A New Beginning
by supernova8610
Summary: SEQUEL TO A TRAGIC LOSS Harry is in his last year at Hogwarts. Before they even arrive at school, Harry and Hermione are accidentaly transported to another time. There, Harry finally learns what he needs in order to defeat Lord Voldemort.
1. Opening Presents

This story is the sequal to the story A Tragic Loss. If you haven't already read it, I suggest you do so, before reading this one. Here's the story ID:1671322   
  
:-)  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
  
~*~  
  
Harry woke up from a deep, comforting sleep. He lay there in bed for a few minutes, happy for the ray of sunshine that fell across him, and waited to hear Aunt PetuniaÕs voice calling up the stairs for him to hurry up and get dressed so that he could fix breakfast for everyone. Reluctantly, Harry opened his eyes, and instead of finding himself inside his bedroom at 4 Privet Drive, he found himself staring at a ceiling covered with posters of the Chudley Cannons quidditch team.   
  
Suddenly, everything came back to him. Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, and Dudley were all dead, for they had been killed by VoldemortÕs Death Eaters. Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape had been killed by Voldemort himself because they had attempted to rescue the Dursleys and the EvansÕ (MarkÕs parents, who were now also dead). Luna, who had been HarryÕs girlfriend for a short while, was dead. She and her father had been killed also by VoldemortÕs Death Eaters. And Ron... Harry had never completely gotten over that. His best friend, dead. Harry remembered holding Ron in his arms while he drew his last breath, and remembered, afterwards, cradling Ron, crying, and not wanting to believe that his best friend was gone forever. The loss of his godfather, Sirius, made everything ten times worse.  
  
Why, though? Harry wondered to himself. Why couldnÕt he stop feeling sad about this? Then something that Dumbledore had said to him on the day of RonÕs funeral came drifting back. 'Death is just another path, Harry. A path that we all must take during our lifetime, sometime or another.' Having remembered this, Harry felt relaxed. He didnÕt know why, but Dumbledore always managed to make Harry feel better about something that had happened, and even now, six month after RonÕs death, what Dumbledore said still comforted him.  
  
Harry got up out of RonÕs (or rather, his) bed, walked across the room to the wardrobe which now held all of his clothes (both Wizard and Muggle), and opened it. He picked out a pair of jeans and a green, short sleeved shirt and put them on. Then he walked over to his bed, after putting his pyjammas away inside the wardrobe, and made it up. Harry looked at the alarm clock, which always told the date and the time, and felt a funny kind of jolt.  
  
The clock said that it was 10:30 in the morning, on the 31st of July. It was his birthday. His seventeenth birthday, to be exact. Harry heard a tapping on the window, and turned around, only to see Hedwig outside of it, with a letter attached to her leg. He went over to the window and opened it, and Hedwig flew over to the desk and held her leg out. Quickly, Harry untied the letter, and as Hedwig flew over to her cage, he opened it.  
  
'Dear Harry,Õ said the letter.   
'I hope you have a very good birthday today. I havenÕt sent you your present with your owl, because I want to give it to in person.   
Happy Birthday!  
Love from, HermioneÕ.  
  
Harry stared at it for a couple of seconds, and then threw it down onto his desk. He was a little miffed that Hermione hadnÕt sent his present with Hedwig. Then Harry felt disgusted with himself. Why was he making such a deal of not getting a present right away? Oh well, Harry thought to himself.  
  
Knock knock.   
  
Harry turned towards the door.  
  
"Come in," he said.  
  
The door to HarryÕs room opened, and in came RonÕs younger sister, Ginny Weasley.  
  
"Morning, Gin," Harry grinned.  
  
"Happy Birthday, Harry!" Ginny threw herself onto Harry in a hug.  
  
"Thanks," said Harry. Ginny stepped back to look at him.   
  
"My, my," she said, looking at Harry. "You certainly look refreshed."  
  
"And I feel refreshed," said Harry. "ThatÕs what nine and a half hours of sleep will do to you."   
  
Ginny smiled. "Come on, letÕs go down stairs. Everyone arrived here ten minutes ago, and mum just sent me up to see if youÕre awake."  
  
"Everyone?"  
  
"TodayÕs your birthday, remember? You didnÕt think that you wouldnÕt get a party, did you?"  
  
"No...I-"  
  
"Well, come on, then," Ginny cut across him. She grabbed his wrist and led him out of the room.  
  
"Aah, let go! YouÕre cutting off the circulation!"  
  
"Oh- sorry," said Ginny, immediatley letting go.  
  
"Er...whoÕs here for the party?"  
  
"Well, HermioneÕs here-"  
  
"Ah, so thatÕs why..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Nothing...nothing," said Harry. "Go on."  
  
"Oh. Well, Lupin and Tonks are here, as well as Bill and Charlie, and Fred and George," Ginny paused for a second, and then went on. ÒAnd Dumbledore arrived five minutes before I was sent up to wake you.Ó  
  
By now, Harry and Ginny had reached the first floor, and then proceeded down the stairs to the ground floor in silence.When they reached the family room, Harry was greeted by a 'Happy Birthday!Õ from everyone in the room.  
  
"Harry, Harry!" said a voice. Harry looked around to see who it was, and saw none other than his other best friend (now just best friend) Hermione Granger.  
  
"Hermione!" Harry went over to her and gave her a hug.  
  
"Harry, how are you? I hope youÕve been well! IÕve missed you so much over the summer!"  
  
"Yeah, IÕve missed you, too," said Harry, as he gave his friend another hug.  
  
"Hey, Happy Birthday, Harry," said Fred and George.  
  
"Thanks, you two." Harry turned to Tonks, Lupin, and Dumbledore. "Hey, itÕs so good you three!"  
  
Lupin smiled, and DumbledoreÕs eyes twinkled, and Tonks pulled Harry into a hug.  
  
"How have you been, Harry?" said Tonks.  
  
"Pretty good, you?"  
  
"Well enough, considering that I get to hunt down Death Eaters everyday."  
  
"But youÕll still teach Transfiguration, wonÕt you?"  
  
"Of course!"  
  
"And," Harry turned to Lupin, "youÕd better still be the DADA professor."  
  
"DonÕt worry, Harry," said Lupin, grinning.  
  
After Harry was done greeting everyone, Mrs. Weasley announced that it was time to open presents.  
  
"Come along, Harry," said Mr. Weasley, revealing a small table packed with presents.  
  
"Harry, open mine first!" said Ginny, thrusting a pretty good sized package into his hands.  
  
Harry took the wrapping paper off, and found that he was now holding a cardboard box.  
  
"Thanks, Gin! IÕve always wanted a cardboard box!"  
  
Everyone sniggered, except for Ginny, who just rolled her eyes.  
  
"As wonderful as the cardboard box is, Harry, what I got you is inside of it."  
  
"Yeah, I knew that," said Harry, grinning. He opened the box, and pulled out a miniature version of a quidditch field, complete with fourteen miniature people on broomsticks, now stationary, and the four quidditch balls, also currently stationary.  
  
"Wow, Gin!"  
  
"ItÕs a game, for two people. Each person has control of their own team, and they control their team with their wands. The balls are controlled by the field itÕs self."  
  
"Thanks a lot!"  
  
"YouÕre welcome," said Ginny. Harry put aside this extrodinary gift, and picked up another present.  
  
"That oneÕs from me," said Dumbledore. Harry opened the gift from the HogwartsÕ headmaster.  
  
Dumbledore had given Harry an actual model of the galaxy, which meant that he would never again have to take another Astronomy lesson.  
  
"Thanks, Professor!"  
  
"Not a problem, not a problem."  
  
By the time Harry was done opening his presents, he had recieved the best birthday gifts that he had ever had. Hermione had given him a new and revised edition of Quidditch Through the Ages, Lupin had given him a book all about the latest defense methods, and Tonks had given him a book on metamorphagi. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had given him a new sweater, blue with a red phoenix kitted on it, along with some chocolate frogs; from Bill and Charlie he recieved a model of Hogwarts, which was exactly like the real thing, complete with ghosts and Hagrid moving about (and it was silent), only it was much smaller; and from Fred and George, Harry recieved...a small, wooden box with a Gryffindor lion on it. He made to open it.  
  
"Uh, Harry, open that later," said Fred hurriedly.  
  
"WeÕd like to explain about whatÕs in it before you actually open it," said George.  
  
"Ok..." said Harry. He put the box on the table.  
  
"Like what you got for your birthday, Harry?" Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
"Of course!" said Harry, smiling broadly.  
  
Mr. Weasley, too, smiled.  
  
"Well everyone, letÕs go out front for the birthday lunch," he said.  
  
"And afterwards," said Fred, "cake-"  
  
"-and ice-cream," finished George.  
  
Everyone went outside, and sat down at a table filled with all of HarryÕs favorite foods. Lunch was a very enjoyable affair, which was followed afterwards by a magnificent chocolate cake, and strawberry ice-cream. Afterwards, Harry sat back in his chair and relaxed. He very happy. Happy that all the people he cared about were here, celebrating his birthday with him, and happy because for the first time in his life he had had a birthday party.  
  
~*~  
  
Read & review, please! I'd really like to know what you think! :-) 


	2. The TimeTurner

Thanks for you reviews, Jarvey, O'Malley the Alley Cat, Fire Tempest and Neo Anderson!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
  
~*~  
  
Later that night, a few hours after HarryÕs birthday celebration had ended and everyone had gone home, Harry was to be found carrying all his presents up to his room. He had put them all in a large box, and was carrying it up the stairs. It was pretty heavy, and Harry was having some trouble with it. As he was going past Fred and GeorgeÕs room, he saw the door open, and the twins come out of it.  
  
"Hey, Harry, need some help with that?" said Fred.  
  
"Here-"said George. He pointed his wand at the box that was in HarryÕs arms, muttered 'locomotor boxÕ, and the box that Harry had been carrying was now being floated up the stairs, directed by GeorgeÕs wand.  
  
"Thanks," said Harry, as he walked up the stairs to the fifth floor, where his room was, besides George.  
  
"No problem, Harry."  
  
"So howÕs the WeasleyÕs Wizarding Wheezes shop doing?"  
  
"Excellent," said George.  
  
"Never been better," said Fred.  
  
Harry couldnÕt really think of anything more to say, and was silent the rest of the way to his room. When Harry opened the door, he stepped quickly inside, and held the door open for George, who was making the box of HarryÕs birthday gifts float in front of him. George lifted the charm, and the box dropped lightly to the floor, and he, Harry, and Fred began to put away the contents of the cardboard box. When they had finished doing this, Fred sat down on HarryÕs bed and picked up the wooden box that he and George had given Harry, and looked at him.  
  
"What?" said Harry.  
  
"ArenÕt you wondering whatÕs in this little wooden box?" said Fred.  
  
"Yeah, but I forgot about it until you brought it up just now."  
  
"Well, Harry," began Fred "WhatÕs in this little unremarkable wooden box is quite extraordinary."  
  
"Fred and I happened to come upon it when we visited the Ministry with our dad a few weeks ago," said George.  
  
"Why were you at the Ministry?" Harry asked.  
  
"ThatÕs not important right now, Harry," said Fred.  
  
"Ok..."  
  
"Anyway, the object in this box," said George. "Like I said before, Fred and I stumbled upon it."  
  
"It was just lying there, as if somebody had dropped it-"  
  
"-but luckily it hadnÕt been broken."  
  
"Dad was talking to Kingsley Shacklebolt-"  
  
"You remember him, Harry," said George.  
  
"Yeah, I remember him," said Harry.  
  
"Like I was saying, before George here interrupted me, Dad was talking to Kingsley Shacklebolt," said Fred.  
  
"And I noticed something lying on the floor, not far from the Auror headquarters," said George.  
  
"George pointed it out to me, and I grabbed it, in put it in one of the pockets of my robe-"  
  
"You mean you stole it?" Harry asked, scowling.  
  
"Well, technically no. We asked some people if they had lost anything- we didnÕt mention what-"  
  
"And they all said they hadnÕt," said George.  
  
"So, anyway, George and I played around with it for a while, to find out what it was."  
  
"So whyÕd you decide to give it to me?"  
  
"Well, we thought that, because Fred and I arenÕt in school anymore, and you are, you could use it to aid yourself in your mischief making."  
  
Harry raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Oh really? And whatÕs that?" he said.  
  
"This-" said Fred, and he opened the box, and pulled out-  
  
"-a time turner?!" Harry exclaimed with shock. "What- How- Why?"  
  
"We already told you what, how, and why, Harry," said George.  
  
"How do you like it?" said Fred.  
  
"A time turner!" said Harry in awe. "But wonÕt the Ministry find out about this?"  
  
"They wonÕt, donÕt worry," said George with a grin.  
  
Harry became suspicious. "How do you know?" he said.  
  
"Because we...er...placed an Unplottable charm on it."  
  
"An Unplottable charm?" said Harry somewhat skeptically. "I thought that an Unplottable charm could only be used on buildings."  
  
"Turns out, it can be used on any object," said Fred.  
  
George stood up to leave. "Come on, Fred, letÕs leave young Harry here to play around with his time turner."  
  
"All right, George," Fred replied, also getting up. "Bye, Harry."  
  
"Bye," said Harry.  
  
Fred and George left the room, and Harry was left alone to examine the time turner that he had been given. He turned it over in his hand. He remembered the time turner that Hermione had had in her third year at Hogwarts, and remembered how, at the end of their third year, he and Hermione had gone back in time to save Buckbeak and Sirius.  
  
Harry had a sudden idea. Now that he had a time turner, maybe he could go back in time to prevent RonÕs death! Harry eagerly put the chain of the time turner around his neck, and was about to turn it over, when he realized something. Ron had died. It was supposed to have happened, and if he, Harry, went back in time to prevent his friendÕs death, Ron would just die soon in a different fashion. There was nothing Harry could do about it. Whoever had created the earth and everything in it, Harry thought, had meant for Ron to die right from the beginning of time.  
  
Harry took the chain off from around his neck, and put the time turner in the wooden box, which he placed on his nightstand. He was exhausted, and so he went over to his wardrobe and got dressed in his pyjammas. Harry turned out the lights, slid under the covers of his bed, took off his glasses and lay his head down on the pillow and closed his eyes. Then he heard the door open.  
  
"Harry, dear?"  
  
It was Mrs. Weasley.  
  
Harry opened his eyes and turned his head so that he could see her. As it was dark in the room, Harry could only see her outline.  
  
"Mrs. Weasley?"  
  
"Oh, hello, Harry dear. I was just coming in to tuck you in and say good night."  
  
Harry smiled as Mrs. Weasley tucked the covers in around him.  
  
"Thanks," said Harry when Mrs. Weasley was done.  
  
"No problem, dear. Good night."  
  
"Good night," said Harry.  
  
Mrs. Weasley left the room, closed the door, and Harry shut his eyes and fell asleep.  
  
~*~  
  
Read and review, people. :-) 


	3. 12 Grimmauld Place

Thanks for you reviews, dreamcatcher386, O'Malley the Alley Cat, and Neo Anderson!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
  
~*~  
  
The next morning, when Harry woke up, it was to find that his bedroom window was open, and through it there came a light breeze to made the curtains moves very slightly. Sunlight was streaming into the room. Harry heard an owl hoot at the end of his bed, and he opened his eyes and looked.  
  
"Morning, Hedwig," said Harry sleepily. He closed his eyes again, and again, Hedwig hooted. "What is it?" said Harry, reluctantly opening his eyes again and sitting up.  
  
Hedwig came over to Harry, and there was a letter tied around her leg. Harry stretched out his arms, yawned, and began to untie it. Hedwig hooted again with impatience.  
  
"IÕm tired, all right?" Harry said grumpily. "IÕm untying this as fast as I can." Geez, said Harry to himself. Whoever tied this must have had quite a bit of time on their hands.  
  
Finally, Harry finished untying the letter, and Hedwig flew over to her cage, which was on HarryÕs desk, and began to gulp some water. Harry lay back down and opened the envelope. It was the list of school things that he would need for the coming year; his 7th, and last year.  
  
'Dear Mr. Potter,Õ said the letter, ÔHere enclosed is a list of the school books that you will need for the coming year. Also, enclosed, is your Head Boy badge. Congratulations!  
'Professor McGonagallÕ  
  
Harry stared at the letter. Head Boy? He put the letter down and picked up the envelope and turned it upside-down, and sure enough, out of it fell a small badge. The badge was red, and on it, there was a small, but not too small, golden lion. The words 'Head BoyÕ were written on the golden lion in red letters.  
  
"Wow!" said Harry. He put aside his Head Boy badge, and picked up the lists of school things that he would need.  
  
'You will need all of the following for the year ahead,Õ said the list. 'NEWTÕs Advanced Potions, by Newt Schamander; NEWTÕs Advanced Transfiguration, by Emeric Switch; NEWTÕs Advanced Charms, by Peter Flitwick; and NEWTÕs Advance Defense Against the Dark Arts.Õ  
  
Well, that shouldnÕt be too bad, thought Harry. I just need to get some more money out of my vault, get the books, and some more Potions ingrediants. And I need new robes.  
  
With all this in mind, Harry got up and got dressed, and went down into the kitchen for breakfast.  
  
~*~  
  
"Wow, Harry!" said Fred, chewing on some bacon. "Head Boy! Congrats!"  
  
Harry had just told everyone in the Weasley household about getting made Head Boy. Well, almost everyone. Bill, Charlie, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had had to leave in the middle of the night to go to a meeting for the Order.  
  
"Nah- itÕs a fake," said George. "How could you be Head Boy? YouÕve caused too much trouble!"  
  
"George!" said Ginny indignantly.  
  
"ItÕs okay, Gin," said Harry. Then he turned to George. "IÕm pretty surprised. But I suppose Dumbledore has his reasons. I wonder what they were?"  
  
"Probably because youÕre 'the Boy who LivedÕ," Fred joked. Harry threw the muffin that he had been eating at him.  
  
"Thanks, Harry," said Fred, finishing off HarryÕs muffin.  
  
"You're gross, Fred," said Ginny.  
  
"So, Ginny," said Fred, changing the subject as a couple crumbs fell out of his mouth. Ginny looked at her brother in disgust. "Have you received your school supply list yet?"  
  
"Yes," said Ginny, but she didnÕt get to say anything more, because right them Mr. Weasley came out of the fire place.  
  
"Morning, Dad," said George.  
  
"Morning, Mr. Weasley," said Harry.  
  
"Good morning," said Mr. Weasley. "Listen, you have to pack up your things, all of you."  
  
"Why?" said Fred.  
  
"Don't ask me why, Fred," said Mr. Weasley. "The Order has just found out from one of our spies that You-Know-Who is after all of the Weasleys, or anybody connected to Harry, here. We know that You-Know-Who plans to come here tomorrow night."  
  
"Why is he after us, Dad?"  
  
"WeÕll discuss that later."  
  
"Where will we be going?" Harry asked.  
  
"12 Grimmauld Place," said Mr. Weasley.  
  
Harry fell silent. He didnÕt, after all, want to go back there, to 12 Grimmauld Place. It held too many memories of his late godfather, however, he knew he mustn't argue.  
  
Mr. Weasley again told everyone to go and pack up their things. Harry headed up to where he slept, in his late best friendÕs room, and started packing all his things into his trunk. There was also a second trunk, which had been RonÕs, that Harry put everything in that he couldnÕt already fit into his own trunk.  
  
When Harry had again arrived in the kitchen (he had had to have Mr. Weasley carry his second trunk down the stairs for him), he found that Ginny, Fred, and George were already there, waiting for them with as many of their things as they could take with them.  
  
"Dad?" said Ginny. "What about you and Mom? How are you going to get all of you things there?"  
  
"IÕve shrunk all of them, and put them in this box that IÕm carrying."  
  
"ThatÕs not a very big box," said George to Fred.  
  
"Yeah, well..." said Fred.  
  
Mr. Weasley held out some floo powder. "Here, Fred, you first."  
  
Fred took the floo powder, threw it into the fire place, stepped in with his trunk, and shouted '12 Grimmauld Place!Õ, and was gone. GeorgeÕs turn came next, and then GinnyÕs. Finally, only Harry and Mr. Weasley were left, and Harry had both of his trunks in to fireplace.  
  
"Mr. Weasley?" said Harry, before stepping into the fireplace himself.  
  
"Yes, Harry?"  
  
"What about Hermione? Is she going to be taken to 12 Grimmauld Place also?"  
  
"Yes, Harry," Mr. Weasley replied. "SheÕs already there, infact. She was brought there last night."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Now, go on. I daresay that she is very anxious to see you."  
  
Harry smiled and stepped into the fire place; he shouted out '12 Grimmauld PlaceÕ and disappeared towards his destination.  
  
~*~  
  
The first thing Harry felt when he stepped out of the fireplace was someone throwing themselves onto him in a hug. It was Hermione.  
  
"Hey, 'Mione," said Harry.  
  
"Hello, Harry!" said Hermione, standing back and smiling. Mr. Weasley just came out of the fire place, and he went over to Mrs. Weasley and kissed her. "I know I only saw you yesterday," Hermione continued, "but IÕm still really glad to see you. Oh, and I hear youÕre Head Boy! Congratulations! IÕm Head Girl!"  
  
"Good to see you, too, 'Mione," replied Harry.  
  
"Why donÕt you and Harry go upstairs, Hermione?" said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Good idea..." said Hermione, picking up one of HarryÕs trunks; Harry picked up the other one, and together, he and Hermione headed upstairs to the bedroom that he and Ron had shared the summer before his fifth year.  
  
"You need some help with that, Hermione?" said Harry. He had already reached the second landing, and Hermione, who was right behind Harry, was having a bit of trouble dragging HarryÕs trunk up the last step.  
  
Harry went over to Hermione, and picked the trunk up for her. As he did so, his hand lightly brushed HermioneÕs.   
  
"Thanks, Harry."   
  
"No problem," said Harry. He dragged the first trunk into the room, and then came back out to help Hermione. He grabbed one end of the trunk, and Hermione the other end.  
  
"WhatÕve you got in here, Harry?" said Hermione, struggling a little under the weight. "Books?"  
  
Harry laughed. "Books? Me? YouÕve got to be joking." He put the trunk down, and sat down on his bed. Hermione sat down next to him.  
  
"Why did you bring two trunks, anyway?" said Hermione.  
  
Harry looked down at his feet. "One of then was RonÕs," he said quietly.  
  
Hermione didnÕt respond. Harry looked up at her, and found her watching him.  
  
"Does being back here...bring a lot of memories back to you?" said Harry.  
  
"Yes," said Hermione. "Yes, it does. Memories of you, me, and Ron hanging out, of Sirius and you laughing your heads off at something..." HermioneÕs voice trailed off.  
  
"I still miss Sirius," said Harry. "And what with Ron..." his voice broke. "Well, itÕs made coming back here all the more painful." He looked at Hermione.  
  
"The same goes for me, too, Harry," said Hermione.   
  
She looked at him. Harry saw a tear run down her face, and he reached up and brushed it out of the way. Then, as a second tear ran down her face, Harry brushed it out of the way, and rested it on her face, with his fingers right below her ear.   
  
"Please donÕt cry, Hermione!" whispered Harry. He looked deeply into her eyes, and the next thing that he knew, he had his lips pressed against hers, and felt her warm breath on his face. Harry felt Hermione lean into the kiss a little more. He placed his other hand on her face, with his fingers right below her ear, and pressed his lips with a little more pressure. Then Hermione pushed him away. She looked distressed.  
  
"Hermione, wha...?"  
  
"IÕm sorry Harry," she sobbed. "I canÕt do this, I canÕt kiss you, not now." Hermione ran out of the room.  
  
"Hermione?" said Harry, as she left.   
  
~*~  
  
Read & review! :-) 


	4. Only Time Can Tell

Thanks to my reviewers!  
  
Disclaimer: Do I really have to repeat it? :-)  
  
~*~  
  
Harry flung himself down onto the bed. He felt both ashamed and embarrassed. Why did he do that? Hermione had just lost her boyfriend, and here he was, kissing her! What, in all that was good and heavenly on earth, had posessed him to do that? Then it came to him. He had kissed Hermione, in hopes that it would make her feel better, as well as himself. But far from making Hermione feel better, she had left the room in a torrent of tears.  
  
Harry was now starting to feel the beginnings of guilt. He was starting to wish he hadnÕt kissed Hermione. SheÕd probably ignore him for the rest of the summer, Harry thought to himself. Oh well. Only time could tell.  
  
~*~  
  
"Harry, wake up! Mum says itÕs time for dinner."  
  
Harry immediatley woke up from his sleep. "Ron?"  
  
"ItÕs me, Ginny. Mum sent me up to wake you."  
  
"Oh, well, tell her IÕll be down in a minute," said Harry.  
  
Ginny left the room, closing the door behind her. Harry got up. It had been two weeks since heÕd kissed Hermione, and sheÕd been ignoring him. Everytime Harry, entered a room where Hermione was, she looked down, and hurried out, and the same thing happened whenever Hermione entered a room where Harry was. Ginny always looked curiously at Harry or Hermione when this happened. Harry went over to his trunk, and changed his shirt, and headed out the door; he decided that heÕd talk to her after dinner- he was tired of all the awkwardness between him and his remaining best friend.   
  
As he passed the stuffed house-elf head, and then Mrs. BlackÕs portrait, he pondered over what he was going to say to Hermione when he got a chance to speak with her later that night. He decided that heÕd leave at the same time as her, and then pull her into the drawing room on the first floor, and speak to her then. All these thoughts stayed in HarryÕs mind as he opened the door into the kitchen.  
  
"Harry, dear, hello," said Mrs. Weasley.   
  
"Good evening, Mrs. Weasley," said Harry.  
  
Mrs. Weasley smiled and led Harry over to the only remaing seat, which was right besides her own; on HarryÕs other side was none other than Hermione. Harry sat down, and ignored the awkwardness of the situation, and the smirks that Fred, George, and Ginny were sending his way.  
  
HarryÕs Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Remus Lupin was there. Harry was beginning to think of Lupin as almost a brother; and the only adult Hary had felt this way about was his late godfather, Sirius. Harry just hoped with all his heart the Lupin wouldnÕt get taken away from him, too. He was the only connection to the school life of James Potter he had.  
  
"Harry, are you all right?" It was Mrs. Weasley.   
  
Harry realized that his eyes were getting misty, but he nodded his head, and summoned the jug of pumpkin juice towards him; he was now 17, and could use magic outside of school. He poured himself some of the juice, and, seeing that HermioneÕs glass was empty, poured her some.  
  
"Thank you, Harry," Hermione said quietly.  
  
"YouÕre welcome," Harry replied quietly.  
  
Harry remained quiet throughout the entire meal, and when dinner was over, and Harry had finished with his steak, Mrs. Weasley got up from her seat and started to clear off the dishes.  
  
"Harry, Ginny, Hermione, ItÕs getting late, and I want you three to go to bed."  
  
"But Mum!" Ginny protested, "IÕm not even tired!"  
  
"Fine, then, you can help me clean up."  
  
"Good night, Mrs. Weasley," said Hermione. She got up and left the room.  
  
"Good night, Hermione."  
  
Harry stayed in his seat for a couple seconds more, and them remembered that he wanted to talk to Hermione.  
  
"Night, Mrs. Weasley," said Harry as he hugged her.  
  
"Good night, Harry dear," she replied.  
  
Harry hurried out of the room, up the stairs, and through the door that opened into the ground floor. Harry saw Hermione halfway up the staircase that led to the first floor. He ran to catch up.  
  
"Hey, Hermione," Harry said, once he had caught up to his friend.  
  
"Oh, Harry, donÕt talk to me just now." Hermione sounded distressed.  
  
"Hermione, please-"  
  
"I want to be left alone!" And she ran the rest of the way to the first floor, and was a quarter of the way up the staircase that led to the second floor when Harry again caught up to her.  
  
"Hermione, please, I-"  
  
Hermione turned to him. "DidnÕt you hear what I just said, Harry?" she asked dangerously.  
  
Harry noticed her tone of voice, but was not perturbed by it. "Hermione, I wanted to apologise! I know I shouldnÕt have kissed you that night-"  
  
"Oh, now youÕre apologising," Hermione snarled.  
  
"Hermione-"  
  
"DonÕt talk to me!" Hermione ran the rest of the way to the third floor, where she now shared a room with Ginny, with Harry right behind her. "Why canÕt you leave me alone!?" shouted Hermione, when she had stopped at her bedroom door.  
  
Harry was taken aback a little. "Hermione-" he began, but she interupted him.  
  
"LEAVE ME ALONE!"  
  
"NO!" Harry yelled. "IÕm not going to leave you alone until you tell me why youÕve been ignoring me for the past two weeks!"  
  
Hermione didnÕt answer.  
  
"ItÕs because I kissed you, isnÕt it," said Harry in a calmer tone of voice.  
  
"Yes," Hermione answered. Her voice was croaky, and when she looked up at Harry, he was startled to find that she was in tears. Harry pulled her into a hug, and she burst into tears.  
  
"Shh..sh, Hermione, please donÕt cry," he whispered. He opened the door, and led Hermione in, who was still crying. "Which bed is yours?"  
  
Hermione nodded her head towards the bed that was closest, and Harry led her over to it, and sat her down on it. Harry sat down beside her, and again pulled her into a hug.  
  
"Hermione, whatÕs wrong? Please, donÕt cry!"  
  
"IÕm sorry, Harry," she sobbed. "ItÕs just that, well, I feel...guilty...kissing you...when he...Ron...was my-"  
  
Hermione rested her head on his shoulder, and tried to settle down. Harry pulled her closer, and put his hand on her head, and ruffled her hair lightly.  
  
"ItÕs ok," said Harry soothingly. "I think Ron would have wanted us to get on with our lives,. He wouldnÕt want us to mourn over him for the rest of our lives, heÕd want us to enjoy them, and be happy."  
  
Hermione sniffed. "YouÕre right, Harry,Ó she said, then after a pause, ÒYou always know just the right thing to say."  
  
"I practiced in my head what I was going to say to you," said Harry, smiling. Hermione laughed.  
  
They sat like that, for some time, until Harry realized that Hermione had fallen asleep on his shoulder. Harry shook her gently, and she awoke.  
  
"Oh, Harry, IÕm sorry-" she began.  
  
"ItÕs all right," said Harry. "Why donÕt I leave you, so you can get some sleep."  
  
"But I donÕt want you to leave!"  
  
"I know, but I need to go to my room to get some sleep, too."  
  
"Please?" Hermione looked at him pleadingly.  
  
"Tell you what," he said. "IÕll go down to my room, get dressed in my pyjamas, and then come back up here. I donÕt know where IÕll sleep, though. I canÕt sleep in GinnyÕs bed, because sheÕs going to be sleeping there..."  
  
"You can sleep with me."  
  
Harry went red, but said, "All right, 'Mione."   
  
He headed out of the room, and down the stairs, and into his bedroom on the second floor. Harry opened his trunk, took off his robes, and put on just his blue pyjama bottoms, and headed back up the stairs. He reached HermioneÕs and GinnyÕs room, and knocked at the door.  
  
Hermione opened it, wearing her pyjamas, which consisted only of a very form-fitting, barely sheer, red silk night dress. Harry stared at this for a couple seconds, then, realizing what he was doing, gave his head a little shake, and looked at HermioneÕs face. It suddenly struck him just how very beautiful she was. Hermione smiled.  
  
"Come in." She held the door open, and Harry walked through. Hermione closed the door, walked over to her bed, and pulled back the covers; she got under them, and motioned for Harry to do so, also. Harry, who was still standing by doors, went over to her.  
  
"Um...is it all right if we pull back the covers a little...?" he trailed off.  
  
"Yeah, all right," said Hermione, and Harry pulled back the covers a little, just enough so that their legs would be covered, and they wouldnÕt be too cold.   
  
Harry climbed into bed next to Hermione; Hermione snuggled up close to him and rested a hand on his chest, just below his shoulder. Harry wrapped his arm around her, and kissed the top of her head. Hermione fell asleep within a few minutes; Harry felt HermioneÕs breath on him, and was comforted by it, and within a few minutes, he, too, fell asleep.   
  
It was like this that Ginny found them, about an hour later, when she came up to her room. She smiled to herself when she saw them sleeping together.  
  
~*~  
  
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	5. An Embarrassing Situation

Thanks for your reviews, O'Malley the Alley Cat, babyjayy, and Neo Anderson!  
  
O'Malley the Alley Cat= Don't worry, I wouldn't dream of doing that, that'd be just cruel! Anyway, what part of NY do you live in? I went to Manhattan just this past summer...  
  
Wow! Another chapter so quickly! I write so much better when I'm tired. I should stay up late more often...  
  
Disclaimer: Do I really have to repeat it? :-)  
  
~*~  
  
The next morning, when Harry woke up, it took him a couple seconds to remember where he was. Not in his bedroom, but in HermioneÕs and GinnyÕs room. He looked over at GinnyÕs bed, and found that she wasnÕt there, but that her bed was unmade, which means that Ginny had seen him and Hermione sleeping together. Harry hoped Ginny wouldnÕt tell Mrs. Weasley, or even worse, Fred and George. Harry looked to his side, and down at Hermione. She was still asleep. Harry kissed her on the forehead, and then took as much care as he could getting out of bed; he tip-toed slowly to the bedroom door, taking care to be as quiet as possible. He opened the bedroom door quietly, stepped out, and closed it after him. When he turned around, he jumped.  
  
There stood Fred and George, whose bedroom was also on the third floor. They were smirking at Harry.   
  
"What?" said Harry.  
  
"What were you doing in there, Harry?" said Fred suggestively.  
  
"Not doing anything you werenÕt supposed to, now were you?" George grinned evilly.  
  
"Did you have sex?" asked Fred, now also grinning evilly.  
  
"No! No, no, no!" said Harry, appalled.  
  
"Sure you didnÕt," said George. Harry could tell he didnÕt believe him.  
  
"IÕm being serious!"  
  
"Then what were you doing in there?"  
  
"Hermione was a little sad about Ron, and so I comforted her, and helped her to her room!"  
  
"Yes, and then?"  
  
"And then she said she didnÕt want to be left alone, and asked me to sleep in her bed with her, and so I went down to my room, got dressed in my pyjamas, went back to her room, and slept with her!"  
  
"You mean took advantage of her."  
  
"No, Fred, no! I did not take advantage of her! IÕd never do that!" Harry said angrily.  
  
"Uh-huh, sure-"  
  
Then a voice interrupted FredÕs.  
  
"I assure you Fred, nothing happened, other than Harry and I kissing a couple times, and him sleeping in my bed alongside me," said Hermione.  
  
"All right, we believe you," said George.   
  
"Morning, 'Mione," said Harry.  
  
"Good morning, Harry," said Hermione. Harry pulled her into a three second kiss, and then pulled away.  
  
"Eww! Must you two do that in front of us?" asked a disgusted Fred.  
  
"Yeah..." said George.  
  
"Sorry," said Harry; he turned to Hermione. "Well," he said, "I should probably go get changed. See you at breakfast, 'Mione."   
  
Harry, much to FredÕs and GeorgeÕs disgust, pulled Hermione into another kiss, and headed to his room, where he got changed into a pair of jeans, a green shirt, and went down to breakfast. He met Hermione halfway down the staircase leading to the kitchen, where they would be eating; she was wearing a pair of jeans also, and a baby pink shirt. Harry put his arm around her; Hermione gave him a quick peck on the cheek, and together, they entered the kitchen, where Mrs. Weasley was just putting breakfast on the table; Ginny, Lupin, Tonks, Dumbledore, and Mr. Weasley were already seated at the table.  
  
"Good morning, Mrs. Weasley," said Harry brightly, leading Hermione to a couple empty chairs between Mr. Weasley and Ginny, and across from the headmaster.  
  
"Good morning, Harry dear," she replied.   
  
Harry and Hermione sat down; Harry poured himself and Hermione some pumpkin juice, and they began to eat their breakfast.  
  
Remus looked at Mr. Weasley. "So what were you saying, Arthur?"  
  
"Oh yes," Mr. Weasley replied. "ThereÕs something very fishy going on at the Ministry-"  
  
"Arthur, I donÕt think you should talk about that in front of the kids," Mrs. Weasley interrupted.  
  
"IÕm not a kid!" said Ginny indignantly.  
  
"Be quiet, Ginny," said Mr. Weasley; he turned to his wife. "Perhaps youÕre right, Molly."  
  
Everyone was quiet for a few minutes while they ate their breakfast. Suddenly Ginny spoke up.  
  
"So, Harry," she said, smiling knowingly. Harry looked at her. "You have a good night sleep last night?"  
  
"Er...yeah," he replied.  
  
Ginny turned to Hermione. "Hermione, did you also have a good night sleep last night also?"  
  
Hermione looked at Ginny. "Yeah...."  
  
Tonks looked curiously from Ginny to Hermione, and from Ginny to Harry.  
  
"You looked like you were having a good night sleep," said Ginny. Harry heard the suggestiveness in her voice, and so, unfortunately, did Tonks.  
  
"Why are you asking Harry and Ginny these questions?" Tonks asked. "Do you know something we donÕt?"  
  
"You could say that."  
  
"Really? What?"  
  
Harry and Hermione threw Ginny alarmed looks; DumbledoreÕs eyes twinkled.  
  
"Well," said Ginny, throwing an evil grin in HarryÕs and HermioneÕs direction. "I went up to bed last night, expecting to see Hermione asleep- alone- in her bed." Remus and Mr. Weasley looked up curiously. Harry cringed. "Anyway, when I walked in the room that I share with Hermione, I look over at her bed, and there she is, lying there asleep, in her new red silk night dress."  
  
"You mean the one that Tonks bought for her?" said Remus. Ginny nodded, and Hermione, blushing furiously, put her head in her arms on the table.   
  
"The sheer one?" said Tonks, attracting Mrs. WeasleyÕs attention.  
  
"Yes, that one," said Ginny. "As I was saying, I looked over at Hermione, asleep in her new red night dress, and who should should she be snuggling up with, asleep, in his pyjama bottoms?" Harry put his face in his hands.  
  
"Who?" asked Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Why, Harry here."  
  
Remus and Tonks looked at Harry with his eyebrows raised and a smile on his face; Mr. Weasley coughed, and tried his best not to smile, and Dumbledore just smiled. Ginny grinned all the more evilly.  
  
"I donÕt believe you," said Mrs. Weasley. "Harry wouldnÕt-"  
  
"Yes he would, mum," said Fred, entering the kitchen with George. "George and I saw him coming out of GinÕs and 'MioneÕs room this morning. I asked him if they had-"  
  
"Did they?" Mrs. Weasley threw a look at Harry and Hermione.  
  
"We didnÕt, I swear! How many times do I have to keep telling you that?" said a thoroughly embarrassed Harry.   
  
"Well, all right, but if you two had...you know...IÕd have to give you two the Talk."  
  
Harry started banging his head on the table, which brought laughter from the rest of the group. "May I please be excused?" he said. Mrs. Weasley nodded, and Harry left the room, with Hermione close behind.  
  
"Well, that was certainly embarrassing," said Hermione, as she and Harry reached HarryÕs room and shutting the door.  
  
"Yes, it was," said Harry. "Er...whyÕd you shut the door?"  
  
Hermione moved a little closer to Harry. "I donÕt want anybody to see us," she said. She removed HarryÕs glasses and put them on his bedside table.   
  
"See us doing what?" Though Harry knew what was coming. Hermione wrapped her arms around him, and Harry, likewise. Harry grinned.  
  
"You look nice without your glasses," said Hermione to Harry, as she moved her face closer to his.  
  
"Thanks," Harry grinned. He moved his face closer to HermioneÕs, so that their lips were touching, and kissed her; they stayed like that for a while, lips locked together, enjoying every second of the kiss, until finally they broke apart.  
  
~*~  
  
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	6. The Leaky Cauldron, Room 11

Thanks for your reviews, dreamcatcher386, babyjayy, and Neo Anderson!  
  
Neo Anderson= I'm not upping the rating again. I've read stories more...shall we say, graphic, than this one, and they were rated PG-13. I'm just pushing the limits...even more so with this chapter. *grins evilly*   
  
Disclaimer: I'm sure you already know what's supposed to go here, so I need not repeat it.  
  
~*~  
  
Two weeks later, Harry was woken up in the morning by a knock at his door.  
  
Knock knock.   
  
Harry blearily opened his eyes.  
  
Knock knock.  
  
"Who is it?" Harry called out groggily.  
  
"Harry, dear, itÕs time to get up!" came Mrs. WeasleyÕs voice. "You have to go back to school tomorrow, and we havenÕt bought any of your things yet, so as soon as you all are ready, weÕre going to Diagon Alley."  
  
Harry got up. "Are we staying at the Leaky Cauldron tonight?" he called out.  
  
"Yes, now get yourself up."  
  
"IÕm up, IÕm up," said Harry; he heard Mrs. Weasley walk up the stairs to the third floor, and proceeded to get dressed. He put on a pair of jeans, and a short-sleeved blue and green shirt, and proceeded to pack his things away in his trunk. When he was done, he headed down to the kitchen, with his trunk in tow, and found that he was the last person there.  
  
"Hey, Harry," said Hermione. She was looking very pretty today in a denim skirt and a salmon colored top.  
  
"Hello, 'Mione."  
  
"Now that you are all here," said Mrs. Weasley, looking around at Hermione, Ginny, and Harry, and also Mr. Weasley, Tonks, and Lupin, as well as the twins. "I have some floo powder here, and weÕll all floo to the Leaky Cauldron. IÕll go first, so I can reserve our rooms."  
  
"Whatever you say, Molly dear," said Mr. Weasley.   
  
Mrs. Weasley walked over to the fireplace, threw in some floo powder, and at once emerald green flames erupted; she stepped inside, said 'the Leaky Cauldron!Õ and disappeared.  
  
"Well, Harry, Ginny, Hermione," said Mrs. Weasley once Harry had emerged from the fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron, "I have your room numbers right here, so if youÕll be so kind as to come over to me..." Harry, Hermione, and Ginny dragged their trunks over to Mrs. Weasley. "Harry, dear, youÕll be in room eleven; Hermione, youÕll be in room ten; Fred, George, youÕll be in room nine; Ginny, room eight; Remus, room seven; Tonks, room six; and Arthur, you and I will be in room five."  
  
"All right, Molly, dear," said Arthur.  
  
"Now, scoot, Hermione, Ginny, Harry, get your things put away, and then you can shop for your school things."  
  
Harry, Hermione, and Ginny did just that; Harry floated his trunk up the staircase, and towards room eleven; HermioneÕs room was opposite him.  
  
"Hermione," said Harry, "why donÕt you and I meet back out here in about, say, fifteen minutes?"  
  
"All right."  
  
Harry gave Hermione a quick kiss, again, much to FredÕs and GeorgeÕs disgust, and went into his room, and closed the door. The room was exactly how he remembered it from his third year. There was the extremely comfortable bed, the oak furniture, and the fireplace, though, at the moment, there was no fire.  
  
Harry dragged his trunk over to the bed; he opened it, and took out the little bag in which he always kept his Wizarding money. Harry shook it; there was a little clinking of some coins. He decided that heÕd stop at GringottÕs with Hermione to replenish his store of Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts.   
  
Harry took one of his school robes, and put the little bag of Wizarding money inside on of his many pockets, along with his wand. Harry went over to his bed, and lay down on it for a few minutes until he heard a knock at the door.  
  
"Harry?" It was Hermione. "Harry, IÕm ready to go."  
  
Harry grinned and put the key to his room in his jeans pocket, and Apparated to HermioneÕs side outside his room (he had passed the Apparation test that summer before his birthday).  
  
Hermione started. "Harry, donÕt do that! You scared me!"  
  
"Ah, sorry Hermione," said Harry. "Well, shall we get going? First, though, I need to stop by GringottÕs and get some more money out of my vault."  
  
"All right," said Hermione. "And then I need to get some money of my own; IÕll need to exchange the muggle money that my mum and dad gave me."  
  
"All right," said Harry, and they set off towardÕs the Wizard bank.  
  
~*~  
  
"So where do you want to first?"   
  
Harry and Hermione were standing outside GringottÕs; both had a good amount of money with them, and were deciding which store to go to first to get their school things.  
  
"Um...how about the Apothecary?" said Hermione. "I need to get some more Potions ingrediants."  
  
"Yeah, me too," said Harry. He set off with Hermione towards the Apothecary, and they got what they needed. Afterwards, Harry suggested that they go to Flourish and BlottÕs, the Wizarding bookstore. Hermione thought that this was a good idea, and so they headed that way.  
  
"What books will you be needing, miss?" said the man who worked there.  
  
"IÕll be needing a copy of NEWTÕs Advanced Potions, NEWTÕs Advanced Transfiguration, NEWTÕs Advanced Charms, and NEWTÕs Advance Defense Against the Dark Arts," said Hermione in a business like tone.  
  
"All right, then, miss."  
  
"Make that two copies of each," said Harry; he smiled at Hermione, who smiled back.  
  
"Right you are, sir," said the sales man, and he headed off to get what Harry and Hermione had requested. While he was gone, an unexpected guest turned up.  
  
"Go away, Malfoy," said Hermione forcefully, glaring at him.  
  
"Watch your mouth, Granger," said Malfoy. "I donÕt appreciate it when Mudbloods talk to me like that."  
  
Harry immediatley started towards his enemy, but Hermione held him back. "DonÕt!" she whispered. Then she turned to Malfoy. "Well, youÕd better get used to it, because thatÕs how IÕm always going to be talking to you. You and your purebloodedness, you think youÕre so great, donÕt you? Always walking around Hogwarts as thought you own the place. Well, IÕm afraid to disappoint you, but you donÕt own it, and now that your precious daddyÕs in Azkaban, youÕve got no right to behave like that. YouÕre just a piece of indecent pureblood scum like your father."   
  
Hermione took a deep breath and glared at Malfoy, who looked murderous. He started towards Hermione, but unfortunately couldnÕt do anything because right then the sales man came back with herÕs and HarryÕs books.  
  
"ThatÕll be ten Galleons for the lot." Harry paid the sales man.   
  
The salesman left, and Hermione threw one last glare in MalfoyÕs direction.  
  
"What are you going to do, Granger?" said Malfoy, his voice full of malice.  
  
Hermione said nothing, but stepped up close to him, raised her fist, and punched him hard in the jaw. She hurried out of the store, with Harry behind her.  
  
"Hermione!" Harry was impressed. "That was incredible!"  
  
"Why thank you, Harry," Hermione replied, smiling. "I must say, it felt immensely satisfying putting Malfoy in his place like that."  
  
"He sure needed it," said Harry. He pulled Hermione into a short, quick kiss, making a few passerby stare. Harry waved at them, smiling sarcastically, and the passerby went on their way.   
  
Harry and Hermione spent the rest of the day together. At noon, they ate lunch at a cafe right across from WeasleyÕs Wizarding Wheezes, which Fred and George owned. Harry and Hermione went there after they were done eating, and the twins gave them some free stuff, including some joke sweets, like Canary Creams. Harry and Hermione stayed there until closing time, which was at seven oÕclock, and together, they and the twins set off for the Leaky cauldron to have dinner with the rest of the group.  
  
"You kids have a nice day today?" Mrs. Weasley asked.  
  
"Yeah," Ginny replied, taking a bite of steak. She had spent the day with Tonks.  
  
"How about you two?" Mrs. Weasley turned to Harry, who was digging into his mashed potatoes, and Hermione, was was sipping her Pumpkin juice.  
  
"We had a good day," said Hermione, putting her glass of juice down. "At Flourish and Blotts Harry and I met up with Malfoy. I have him a good talking to, and punched him in the jaw-" the Weasley twins cheered, and gave Hermione high-fives "-and after that, Harry and I spent the rest of the day with Fred and George in their joke shop."  
  
Mrs. Weasley frowned. She obviously didnÕt approve of fighting, but she kept silent. Mr. Weasley engaged Tonks in a discussion about electrical muggle objects, while the rest of the group plowed through their dinner.  
  
About an hour later, everyone was finished eating. The atmosphere was very relaxed, and Harry, Fred, and George were leaning back in their chairs, looks of content on their faces.  
  
"Well," said Fred and George, "weÕd better get our room. Good night."  
  
Everyone wished them good night; then they all sat at the table for a few more minutes. There was a distant rumble of thunder. Mr. and Mr. Weasley Excused themselves from the table; and slowly, everyone else excused themselves, until the only person left at the table was Harry. He took a sip of his Pumpkin juice, and decided that heÕd better get some sleep; heÕd need it, because the next day he was going back to Hogwarts.  
  
Harry got out of his seat and went up the stairs and to his room. He took the key out of his pocket, unlocked the door as more thunder sounded, and stepped inside.  
  
There was a roaring fire in the fireplace. Harry stood in front of this for a few minutes, and then reluctantly went over to his trunk and took out his blue pyjama bottoms. He undressed, and put his pyjama bottoms on. He heard another rumble of thunder, which sounded closer, and a knock at his door. Harry went over to his door, opened it, and saw Hermione standing there, in her barely sheer, red silk night dress. She had a floral silk bathrobe on, and from the expression on her face, Harry could tell that she was a little scared.  
  
"Hermione?" said Harry. "Oh- come in, come in." Harry held the door open for her, and closed in when she had gone through. "Are you all right?"  
  
"IÕm sorry Harry," Hermione replied, distressed. "ItÕs just that...IÕve always been scared of thunder. I donÕt know why.... Um..." she trailed off, looking at Harry desperately.  
  
"Do you want to sleep in here?"  
  
Hermione nodded.  
  
"Well, all right." Harry walked over to the edge of the bed.   
  
Hermione took off her silk bathrobe, and was about to climb under the covers when she saw Harry looking at her.  
  
"What?" she said.  
  
Harry gave his head a little shake. "Sorry," he said quickly. "ItÕs just that you look...well...so beautiful tonight."   
  
Hermione smiled, and walked over to Harry.  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yeah..." Harry caressed the side of her face, and smiled.  
  
Hermione smiled, and wrapped her arms around Harry; she gave a quick kiss.   
  
"You probably donÕt know this," said Harry, placing a hand on either side of HermioneÕs face, "but youÕre just about the most beautiful girl at Hogwarts. The other guys are just too much of an idiot to see it." Hermione smiled. Harry drew his face closer to hers, and placed his lips gently on hers, and drew away, almost reluctantly.   
  
Hermione looked straight into HarryÕs eyes, smiling. She gently removed his glasses. Harry pulled her face to his. He felt Hermione wrap her arms once more around him as he put his arms around his waist as they kissed with an affection that surprised even Harry. They remained this way for a few more seconds, until Hermione broke apart suddenly and pushed Harry onto the bed, wearing a mischievous smile on her face.  
  
"Wha-?" said Harry. Then he understood. He smiled mischievously, and pulled Hermione down onto the bed with him as they began to kiss with a renewed fervor.  
  
~*~  
  
please review 


	7. Swirling White Mist

Thanks for your reviews, dreamcatcher386, O'Malley the Alley Cat, and Neo Anderson!  
  
O'Malley the Alley Cat= I live in Napa, CA. :-)  
  
Disclaimer: Take a wild guess...oh, and watch out for the monkeys (that was for you, O'Malley the Alley Cat! ;-) )  
  
~*~  
  
The next morning when Harry woke up, it took him a few seconds to realize why Hermione was sound asleep next to him. Then he smiled as he remembered. Last night had been one of the best nights of his life, and he and Hermione had shared it together. Harry caressed HermioneÕs face, and gave her another kiss. Her eyes fluttered open, and a smile crept onto her face.   
  
"Morning, Harry."  
  
"Morning."  
  
"Last night was amazing, wasnÕt it?"  
  
Harry grinned. "Yeah, it was."  
  
"We have to go back to Hogwarts today." Hermione looked at the clock. "Oh, itÕs eight oÕclock. WeÕve got about another hour before everyone else wakes up. I should probably go into my room, just so no one suspects anything."  
  
"Yeah, good idea," he said. "See you later."  
  
"Later," said Hermione. She gave Harry one last kiss before she went out of the room and into her own.  
  
Harry lay in his bed for a few more minutes, or rather, a half hour, before getting up himself. He went over to his trunk, got dressed, and made sure everything was in his trunk that was his; he went over to Hedwig's cage, made sure his owl was in the cage, and the cage locked, and brought it over and put it down next to his trunk. Harry went over to the mirror, and tried to tame his hair with a comb and some water, but got frustrated because his hair just wouldnÕt lie down flat.  
  
"Bloody hell, am I stupid," he said to himself. He screwed up his face in concentration, and when he heard a slight pop, he opened his eyes. His hair looked much better now, in his opinion. It wasnÕt sticking up like it normally did, but was now tame, and lying elegantly on his head.   
  
Harry smiled at his reflection, and looked at his watch; he found that it was already nine oÕclock, so he exited his room and headed down the staircase and into the parlor where he, Hermione, and everyone else had eaten the night before. Harry was surprised, upon entering, to find Hermione already sitting at the table, along with Tonks and Lupin, all eating their breakfast. Harry sat down in front of Hermione, and pulled some eggs and bacon towards him.  
  
Hermione and Harry looked up at each other, and smiled embarrassedly.   
  
Hermione giggled. "Your hair looks nice." she looked down back at her plate.   
  
Harry shifted in his seat, and poured himself some pumpkin juice. He poured some for Hermione, who looked at him, smiled, giggled, and looked back down at her plate. Harry rolled his eyes, and began on his breakfast right. Tonks and Lupin had been watching this with curiosity. Lupin muttered something to Tonks, who nodded her head, and spoke up.  
  
"Hey, Harry," he said. "Can I have a word with you?"  
  
"Er...OK." Harry got up from his seat, and followed him into a smaller parlor, only accessible from the one they had just left.  
  
Lupin sat down, and motioned for Harry to do so also. He looked at Harry. Harry looked at his feet.  
  
"Harry...I need to know something...have you done anything...well..."  
  
Harry could tell that Lupin was having trouble saying what he wanted.   
  
"Just say it," said Harry.  
  
Lupin took a deep breath. "Have you...did you...er.... Did you-"  
  
"HavesexwithHermione?" said Harry very quickly, still looking at his feet. Harry sighed. "Possibly."  
  
"Either yes or no."  
  
"Yes, all right?"  
  
Lupin stared at Harry. "Harry..." Harry could see that his DADA professor was uncomfortable. "Why did you do this? Do you realize you couldÕve gotten her pregnant?"  
  
"Yes, I realized that."  
  
"Then why?"  
  
"Because we both love each other."  
  
"Harry, just because you both love each other doesnÕt mean you should..."  
  
"I know, I know," said Harry.   
  
"I mean, you should at least wait until your married...not that your parents did..." Lupin added to himself.  
  
HarryÕs head shot up. "What?! My parents? When?"  
  
"During our seventh year at Hogwarts. It had been about a month after they both admitted that they were in love with each other."  
  
Harry smirked.  
  
"Not that I approve of that..."  
  
"So in this case, history basically repeated itself?"  
  
Lupin nodded, and then smiled. "Yes," he said, getting up from his seat and patting Harry on the shoulder. "Well, letÕs go join the others."  
  
~*~  
  
Harry and Hermione were now on the Hogwarts express, sharing a compartment with their fellow 7th year, Neville Longbotton. Hermione, being her typical self, was reading her Transfiguration book that she would use in the coming year. Harry and Neville were currently playing a game of WizardÕs chess, and were talking about their summers; they were eating chocolate frogs, for the lunch trolley had gone by an hour before, and they were swapping the chocolate frog cards. So far, including the cards Harry already had in his trunk, he now had chocolate frog cards of himself, Merlin (which Neville said was very rare), and Mr. Weasley (for being the youngest ever Minister for Magic).  
  
The atmosphere in the compartment was very relaxed at the moment. Though, of course, it wouldnÕt stay that way for long...  
  
Neville had just left the compartment, saying that he needed to use the restroom, and now Harry and Hermione were alone; Hermione was still reading her book, and Harry was carefully going over his next move on the WizardÕs chess board. He was busily going over different scenarios, when the compartment door opened, revealing an uninvited guest, or guests.  
  
"Hello, Malfoy," said Harry calmly, without looking up from the chessboard. "So nice of you to grace us with your presence."  
  
Malfoy narrowed his eyes dangerously at Harry. "Quiet, Potter. I didnÕt come here to deal with you."   
  
Harry noticed the tone in MalfoyÕs voice, and he didnÕt like it. He looked up from the chessboard, and saw Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle standing in the door way.  
  
"Then who did you come here to deal with?" said Harry, with the air of readying himself for a fight.  
  
"With Granger."  
  
At these word, Hermione looked up from her book at Malfoy. She glared at him intently.  
  
"What?" she said impatiently. "Speak!"  
  
ÒIÕm not a dog!Ó  
  
"Yeah, I think thatÕs a little obvious," said Harry. Crabbe and Goyle flexed their muscles threateningly.  
  
"I came here to give Granger a little payback for the way she spoke to me in Diagon Alley yesterday," said Malfoy, looking at Harry.  
  
"Out with it," said Hermione.  
  
"DonÕt talk to me that way, you Mudblood!"  
  
Harry stood up so fast that the chess pieces scattered.  
  
"Take that back!"  
  
"Make me, Potter!"  
  
Harry shoved Malfoy. Malfoy shoved back, and earned himself a punch from Harry. Malfoy punched back, but Harry ducked out of the way, so instead of punching Harry, MalfoyÕs punch went wide, and hit the rack where HarryÕs trunk was stowed; it fell, and burst open at HermioneÕs feet. Hermione pulled her feet up quickly out of the way. Everyone stared at the trunk.  
  
Malfoy threw a last dirty look at Harry and said, "Come on." He, Crabbe, and Goyle left the compartment.  
  
Harry went over to the compartment door and closed it, and when he turned around, his eyes grew wide. A swirling, white mist was rising slowly from his trunk.  
  
"Uh, Hermione?"  
  
Hermione, who had begun reading her book again, look up. "What is it?"  
  
Harry pointed at his trunk, and as HermioneÕs gaze fell on the swirling, white mist, which was surrounding them and their things quicker and quicker. Then they each felt a tug, and were both lurched irresistibly forward.  
  
~*~  
  
"What just happened?"  
  
It was Hermione that had just spoken. After being lurched irresistibly forward, they had been surrounded by the white mist, and then they felt as though they had been dropped from a height of three feet. They had landed in the Entrance Hall in Hogwarts. It was day break outside, but not a sound could be heard from...anywhere. Harry and Hermione looked around, confused.  
  
"Well," said Harry at last, "at least we got here quickly; we donÕt have to ride on that train anymore."  
  
"Yes, but..." Hermione bit her lower lip.  
  
"What?"  
  
"What do you think will happen when all the Professors find us here way before everyone else?"  
  
"I dunno...reckon we should go to Dumbledore?"  
  
"Yeah...good idea," said Hermione. She and Harry picked up their trunks (and Harry, HedwigÕs cage, with his owl still inside) and headed towards DumbledoreÕs office.  
  
"All right, hereÕs the entrance," said Harry, a few minutes later. "But whatÕs the password?"  
  
"What if he hasnÕt changed it yet, since last year?"  
  
"Good idea.... Canary Creams!" Harry said. "Nope."  
  
"Sherbert Lemon?" tried Hermione.  
  
"Um...Fizzing Whizzbees?...Cockroach Cluster?"  
  
"Bertie BottÕs Every Flavor Beans?"  
  
ÒHermione, Dumbledore doesnÕt like Every Flavor Beans.Ó  
  
"Oh yeah.... Oh, what could the password be? Socks" Hermione tried.  
  
Getting desperate, Harry tried the next thing that came immediatley to his mind.   
  
"Blood-Flavored Lollipops!" And to HarryÕs and HermioneÕs surprise, the stone gargoyle guarding the entrance to DumbledoreÕs office leaped aside.  
  
"LetÕs leave our things here," said Hermione.  
  
"Yeah, good idea..." Harry said, and he and Hermione went on up to DumbledoreÕs office.  
  
~*~  
  
you know what to do... :-) 


	8. Discovering the Past

Thanks for your reviews, volleypickle16, O'Malley the Alley Cat, LOTRfan86, babyjayy, and athenakitty!  
  
~*~  
  
athenakitty= your 1st question: I dunno, it was just an awkward situation, ya know? :-) your 2nd question: you'll see :-) your 3rd question: you'll find out later on in the story :-)  
  
O'Malley the Alley Cat= yeah, but i'm not too comfortable living in the most earthquakeprone state in the US... anyway, which part of CA did you go to? you can e-mail me, if you want, so we can talk about this stuff through e-mail, and not on here. :-) my e-mail's in my bio.  
  
Disclaimer: Don't even ask... ESPECIALLy don't ask the monkeys...they bite.  
  
~*~  
  
When Harry and Hermione had reached the door that led into DumbledoreÕs office, they found that they had no need to knock, for the door was already wide open. Harry and Hermione walked into the office, but Dumbledore was no where in sight.  
  
"Where is he?" said Hermione.  
  
"I donÕt know where Dumbledore is!"  
  
There was a slight cough behind them, and then a voice. "I am right here."  
  
Harry and Hermione both turned around instantly.  
  
"Professor-" Hermione began.  
  
"James, I know youÕre eager to learn as much as you can," said Dumbledore to Harry, with a twinkle in his eye, "but I assure you that youÕll have plenty of time to do that during the school year."  
  
"But...Professor..." stammered Harry. "IÕm not James, IÕm Harry. Besides, my parents are dead, remember?"  
  
"Dead?" then Dumbledore got a closer looking at Harry. "Oh! IÕm terribly sorry that I mistook you for James! ItÕs just that...you look extraordinarily like him...except for your eyes.... Are you and James, perhaps, related in some way?"  
  
"Yes, Professor, heÕs my dad, remember?"  
  
Dumbledore looked a little confused. "Perhaps you'd like to sit down and explain everything," he said, sitting behind his desk, and gesturing towards two chairs.   
  
Harry and Hermione sat down in them, and began to explain everything. How HarryÕs parents were James and Lily, how they had died, and about everything up to the part when the swirling white mist brought them to Hogwarts. When at last they reached the end of the story, which had taken an hour, maybe more, Dumbledore sat back in his chair, and surveyed the two before him.  
  
"The swirling white mist... and you say you have no idea where it came from?" Harry nodded. ÒI think that there, I may be able to help you. You see, whenever a Time-turner has broken, out of it will arise a swirling, white sort of mist. Harry, did you have a Time-turner with you?"  
  
"No..." He said. Then he remembered the Time-turner that Fred and George had given him. "Yes. A couple friends gave it to me."  
  
Dumbledore sighed.  
  
"Professor," said Hermione, "er...is there any way we can get back to our own time?"  
  
"Yes, but it will take a while."  
  
"We can wait," said Harry. "Wait, itÕs 1977, right?"  
  
"Yes..."  
  
"Just making sure."  
  
"Now," said Dumbledore. "You will obviously have to stay here as students until you can get sent back to your own time."  
  
"OK..."  
  
"You two are in your 7th year, are you not?"  
  
"Yes, we are," said Hermione. "Harry and I were also appointed Head Boy and Girl, but..." she trailed off.  
  
"Well, you will not be able to be Head Boy and Girl in this time, because those positions are filled by James and Lily."  
  
"All right..." said Harry.  
  
"But I will need to sort you..."  
  
"But Professor!" Hermione protested. "WeÕre already in Gryffindor!"  
  
"Yes, I know," said Dumbledore "In your time, your in Gryffindor, but in this time, things are different. IÕm very sorry."  
  
"ItÕs OK," said Harry dejectedly. He turned to Hermione. "Even if we arenÕt sorted into the same house this time, we can still...er...see each other."  
  
"Yes, thatÕs true," said Hermione, sighing. "LetÕs get this over with."  
  
Dumbledore got up, and fetched the sorting hat, which he placed on HarryÕs head. A moment later the hat yelled out 'GRYFFINDOR!' Harry was glad that he had been placed into Gryffindor, but he was still worried about Hermione.   
  
Dumbledore then put the hat on HermioneÕs head. It took a few minutes for the sorting hat to decide; Harry was crossing his fingers and hoping and praying that Hermione would be in Gryffindor also...however...   
  
'RAVENCLAW!' shouted the hat. Hermione took it off of her head, looking extremely disappointed. She hugged Harry, who was also disappointed.   
  
Oh well, thought Harry to himself. At least Hermione and I can still see each other, even if we are in different houses.   
  
~*~  
  
Harry dragged himself up the stairs to the 7th year boys dormitory. His trunk and all his other things had been brought with him, and Hedwig had been put in the owlery; Harry opened the door, and saw, not the usual five bed, but six beds, for one had been added for him. Harry went over to his bed, and sat down on it.   
  
Everyone else would be here in a few hours, and before everyone was to arrive, he, harry, and Hermione, would be in the Entrance Hall, where they would wait with the rest of the students.   
  
Dumbledore had said that Harry would be have to be changed during his stay in his parentsÕ time; his last name, instead of being Potter, would be Longhorne. HermioneÕs last name, however, would stay the same. That brought another thing to HarryÕs mind. If he looked exactly (well, almost exactly) like his dad, some people were likely to get suspicious, so Harry brought an image of himself to his mind. He imagined this image with red hair, the nose shortened a little, and with blue eyes. Harry concentrated very hard on this image, and, with a small pop, achieved the desired results. Harry smiled to himself, and got up.  
  
After unpacking his things, Harry thought of flying around on his broom a bit. But no, there wouldnÕt be anyone to fly with, except Hermione, and she didnÕt really like getting on brooms. Harry settled on walking around the castle, and so he headed out of the portrait hole that guarded the entrance to the Gryffindor common room..  
  
Walking around was very therapeutic, as Harry had found on many different occasions. It gave his mind the freedom to go almost blank, thinking about nothing. At other times, walking around the castle could be helpful, but in a different way. For instance, if something was troubling him, or if he was mad at someone or something, walking helped alleviate his troubles, and helped him to think of solutions to his problems.  
  
Right now, Harry was passing a corridor with lots of windows. He looked through them for a second before continuing. Then he saw Hermione come out of the directing in which he knew the Ravenclaw common room was.  
  
"Hey, Hermione!"  
  
Hermione looked up, and her mouth dropped.  
  
"Harry?"  
  
"Bit of a change, I know," said Harry. "But I didnÕt want to look like my dad, or people would get suspicious, so I changed myself to look like this.... How do you like it?" he asked, a little nervously.  
  
Hermione ran up to Harry, and threw her arms around him, "I love it!" she said, before giving him a quick kiss.  
  
Harry and Hermione spent the rest of the day together, and when it came time for them to come into the Entrance Hall, they did so anyway, but reluctantly. They had been waiting there for a few moments, when the doors to the Great Hall were opened, and Dumbledore greeted them.  
  
"Good evening, Miss Granger and Mr. Longhorne!"  
  
"Evening, Professor."  
  
"The carriages should be coming of the drive right about now. You two should probably come in and sit at your respective tables."   
  
Harry and Hermione parted at the entered the Great Hall, and Hermione sat down at the Ravenclaw table, and Harry, at the Gryffindor table. Harry waited there for a few minutes, alone, and then students began to enter the hall.  
  
Harry felt a person sit on either side of him, and two people sit in front of him. He looked up.  
  
"Hi, IÕm James, James Potter" said the guy sitting on HarryÕs right. "My friends and I thought you looked like you could use some company."  
  
Harry smiled.  
  
"Oh, IÕm Sirius Black," said the guy to HarryÕs left, "And that Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew."   
  
Harry had felt a rush of anger at hearing PettigrewÕs name, but contained it, so no one noticed.  
  
"And who are you?"  
  
"Harry Longhorne," answered Harry.  
  
"Pleased to meet, you, Harry," said Sirius.  
  
"Likewise."  
  
"Everyone, could I have your attention!" Dumbledore called out, putting an end to the conversations amongst the student. "Let the sorting begin!"  
  
While he was talking, a stool was brought out, with a very tattered old wizardÕs hat on top. When the stool with the hat had been set down, the doors leading into the Entrance Hall opened, and a long line of scared looking first years entered the hall and came every closer to the hat. When they had come close enough, the Sorting Hat began to sing:  
  
"Oh you may not think IÕm pretty, but donÕt judge on what you see, IÕll eat myself if you can find a smarter hat than me.  
  
"When the founders of the houses were growing weary, they put some brains in me, so I could choose what houses students went to.  
  
"There were qualities the founders admired in the students, and they put them in like this:  
  
"The bravest would go to Gryffindor, the smartest of the smart, to good old Ravenclaw. The most cunning of the cunning went to Slytherin, and good Hufflepuff, she took only the most loyal.  
  
"So put me on, donÕt be afraid, and I will tell you where you ought to be."  
  
The Great Hall was filled with clapping, which was hushed by Professor McGonagall.... Harry stared wide-eyed at McGonagall. After her death in his own time, seeing her now was just...well, strange.  
  
"Harry, wake up!" said James, waving a hand in front of HarryÕs face.   
  
"What? Oh." Harry could hear the others sniggering, but he ignored it. Instead, he turned his attention to the sorting.  
  
"Dakota, Sterling!" said Professor McGonagall loudly.  
  
"GRYFFINDOR!" The Gryffindor table broke out into wild cheers and clapping as Sterling went to her seat.  
  
"Friedman, Roy!"  
  
A little boy with brown hair stepped up.  
  
"RAVENCLAW!"  
  
The Ravenclaw table broke into a storm of applause as Roy joined them.  
  
Harry caught sight of Hermione clapping, and talking to a couple girls sitting next to her. Hermione turned around and waved, and the two girls Hermione had been talking to waved also.  
  
"You got a girlfriend over in Ravenclaw, Harry?" asked Sirius, who had seen the girls waving at Harry.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Which one?" asked James, who had also seen the girls wave at Harry.   
  
"The one with the brown hair. Her nameÕs Hermione."  
  
"SheÕs gorgeous!" said Sirius.  
  
"SheÕs mine, so back off," said Harry with a smile.  
  
"If you say so, but the blonde sitting next to her is pretty good looking too."  
  
"You mean the girl that you went out with for only a day?" asked Remus.  
  
"Er...yeah..." Sirius said, looking downcast. Then suddenly his face lit up. "But the red head that HarryÕs girlfriend was talking to is pretty good looking..."  
  
"Sirius," said Remus, "if I remember correctly, you went out with her for...not even an hour before you dumped her."  
  
"Must we get into a discussion about who Sirius has gone out with, and how long it took him to dump them? LetÕs talk about something else," said James, looking over at a certain red head that Harry recognized as his mother...well, future mother anyway. "Hey Evans!"  
  
"No, I wonÕt go out with you."  
  
"ThatÕs not what I was going to ask you, my love."  
  
Lily rolled her eyes, while Peter and Sirius sniggered.  
  
"Then what were you going to ask me?"  
  
"I was going to ask you if youÕve met our new friend, Harry Longhorne. Harry, meet Lily Evans, the love and joy of my life."  
  
Harry laughed and shook hands with Lily. "Nice to meet you."  
  
"You too, Harry. Your girlfriend is very pretty," she added, so that only Harry could hear. Harry smiled.   
  
"Well, James here thinks that youÕre the most beautiful girl in the entire school," said Harry.  
  
Lily blushed, and smiled at James.  
  
"Er, what was that about?" James asked.  
  
"Nothing...nothing," said Harry.  
  
"Let the feast begin!" said Dumbledore, and food magically appeared on the house tables.  
  
~*~  
  
"IÕm hungry."  
  
"Sirius, youÕve had three whole steaks, not to mention a mountain of other food, and youÕre still hungry?" James shook his head.  
  
Harry, James, and Sirius walkd out of the Great Hall, and into the Entrance Hall and up the marble staircase, along with the Ravenclaws. When they reached the place where the Ravenclaws had to go one way, and the Gryffindors another, Harry pulled Hermione aside. They were watched by James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, and HermioneÕs new friends, Kathleen (the red head) and Amanda (the blonde).  
  
"Well, good night, 'Mione," said Harry, placing his hands on either side of HermioneÕs face. Harry gave her a kiss that last so long that Sirius was beginning to tap the floor with his shoe with impatience. Finally Harry and Hermione broke apart.  
  
"Good night, Harry."  
  
Harry watched as Hermione, Kathleen, and Amanda walked off towards the Ravenclaw common room. Then he heard a cough behind him.  
  
"Oh...right, well, letÕs get going..."  
  
All the way back to the Gryffindor common room, Harry couldÕve sworn that James and Sirius kept smirking at him.  
  
~*~  
  
You know what to do. 


	9. A Traitor is Revealed

Thanks for your reviews, volleypickle16, O'Malley the Alley Cat, LOTRfan86, babyjayy, athenakitty, and Neo Anderson!  
  
Neo Anderson= I put Hermione in Ravenclaw for an important reason...which you will find out later. :-)  
  
athenakitty= You'll find out, and yes to the second question.  
  
LOTRfan86 (and all my other readers who want some pointers about writing fan fics)= It's easy to write a fan fic. All you have to do is write a story, (If you have a Windows computer, use Microsft word, and if you have a Macintosh [which is what I have] use simple text [if you use simple text, write .txt for the label]). Then you log in, and go to the Read Me First section, read that, then go to Document Manager, upload you story, preview it for any mistakes, then if you're writing a new story, go to Create a Story, and when you're done with that, go to Edit Story/Chapter Management. Then click Submit New Chapter to, of course, submit a chapter. Then you're done! Hope that helped.  
  
Disclaimer: I'm sure by now, it's very obvious what goes, here, eh? :-)  
  
Oh, and don't go to Brazil...I hear the monkey problem is even worse this year (line from The Simpsons)  
  
~*~  
  
Two month later, and Harry was really beginning to adjust to being in his parents' time. At first it had been a little weird, but eventually he became used to it.   
  
Hermione had also been having a pretty good time. She and her friends Kathleen and Amanda hung out with Harry and the Marauders (who inducted Harry into to their group right away, so he could pull pranks with them), and they spent as much time as they could hanging out together. Even though Kathleen and Amanda had once gone out with the infamous girl-dumper (only James called his friend that) Sirius Black, they had, of course, forgiven him, so all was well in that area.   
  
Because Hermione was in Ravenclaw, she had connection with some of the brightest minds in the school (with the exception of James, Sirius, and Remus, and Harry). Harry had asked her privately to check with some people about how to go forwards in time (though Hermione didnÕt say why), and there were currently a few students working on that. They were doing this all without the knowledge of the teachers. Dumbledore, of course, knew what the students were doing, and helped them without their knowing, but nobody knew that.  
  
Harry, of course, was not on the quidditch team this time because there werenÕt any spaces available, but every Saturday that wasnÕt devoted to Hogsmeade, Harry, James, and Sirius played some quidditch, and were watched by Hermione, Kathleen, Amanda, Remus, and Peter.  
  
All in all, Hermione and Harry had been pretty busy, and currently, Harry and the Marauders were in double Potions with the Slytherins.  
  
"Settle down, class, settle down," said the Potions teacher, Professor Klyne.   
  
Professor Klyne, luckily, didnÕt favor the Slytherins, or any other house, although he wasnÕt in general a very nice person. He was mean to everyone, except the popular students, which in this case were Harry, James, Remus and Sirius. Professor Klyne had blonde, greasy hair, and a wide, toothy smile (when he did smile at all, which wasnÕt often).  
  
"Today you will be brewing the Switching Potion," Professor Klyne continued. Harry tuned him out, for he had brewed this same potion in his fifth year, and, therefore, already knew how to brew it.  
  
"You may begin," finished Professor Klyne.  
  
Harry, who was sitting next to Remus, was sitting in the back row, along the James and Sirius, who were partners. In front of them sat Snape, who was alone.  
  
"Harry, why werenÕt you listening to Professor Klyne when he was explaining about the potion?" Remus asked Harry.  
  
"Because I already brewed this when I was in my fifth year," said Harry, brushing his (now red) hair out of his (now blue) eyes. "My class was pretty advanced for their level."  
  
"I can tell."  
  
Remus added the first ingredient to his potion, and began to stir, while Harry listened in on JamesÕs and SiriusÕs conversation.  
  
"So, Padfoot my friend," said James in a low voice, "what sort of mayhem should we cause today?"  
  
"How about we curse one of the Slytherins?"  
  
"Which Slytherin should we curse?"  
  
"I should think that would be obvious," said Sirius.  
  
James face split into an evil grin. "Snivellus? Excellent. However, we should make it look like an accident, and we should make it...severe enough to get us out of this class early."  
  
"How are we going to do that?"  
  
"I have an idea how you can achieve that," said Harry.  
  
James and Sirius jumped.   
  
"Were you listening in on us?" James asked.  
  
"Obviously."  
  
"Never mind that, Prongs- Harry whatÕs your idea?" said Sirius with a grin.  
  
"Well, in my second year," said Harry in a low voice so that nobody but Sirius and James could here (Remus could hear Harry, too, but he frowned and said nothing), "my friend Hermione-"  
  
"Your girlfriend?"  
  
"Yes," said Harry. "Anyway, Hermione needed to get some potions ingredients for a certain potion, and some of the ingredients were in the teacherÕs private store cupboard. So one day, Hermione gave me a FilibusterÕs Firecracker, and told me that I was to throw the Cracker into someoneÕs cauldron, which I did, when she gave me the signal. The cauldron exploded, and everyone got showered with the Swelling Solution, except, of course, the teacher, Hermione, me, and my friend Ron-" at the mention of RonÕs name, HarryÕs voice broke.  
  
"Harry, are you all right?" said Remus.  
  
"Yeah...I guess..." Harry nodded quickly and swallowed.  
  
"WhoÕs Ron?" asked Sirius.  
  
"He was one of my best friends," said Harry. "He...he was murdered in January by one of VoldemortÕs death eaters." Harry closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He thought he had gotten over his friendÕs death, but then figured that things like that take a long time to heal.  
  
"Has anyone else you know...died?" asked Sirius.  
  
"Sirius!" said Remus.  
  
"ItÕs all right," said Harry. "My parents died when I was a baby; they were killed by Voldemort. And then, last year, in June, my godfather was killed by one of VoldemortÕs Death Eaters. He was like the father I never had, but...IÕm over that now."  
  
"Harry," said James. "IÕm so sorry!"  
  
"ItÕs OK," said Harry. Then he grinned. "So, should we get working on causing some mayhem, mainly to dear old Snivellus?"  
  
James was silent for a second.  
  
"What do you have in mind?"  
  
"Well..." Harry said.  
  
"ThatÕs brilliant!" said Sirius and James in admiration.  
  
"OK, you ready to execute our prank?"  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
"OK, here goes..."  
  
Harry bent down, and got a firecracker out of his robes. He lit the tip of it with his wand, and it began to fizzle; he stood up, and lobbed it in Snape's cauldron. Harry, James, and Sirius (and Remus) all ducked, and then the cauldron exploded, showering everyone in the potion (except Harry, James, Sirius, and Remus). Snape, however, got drenched in the most potion. While pandemonium still reigned, Harry, James, and Sirius took the opportunity to curse Snape. Then they stood up, and tried to look innocent, even though they knew that they wouldnÕt get in trouble.  
  
"Everyone! Everyone!" Professor Klyne yelled out. "If any of you was hit by the Switching Potion, come to me! You can leave afterwards because of this incident!"  
  
Harry, James, Remus, and Sirius exchanged grins, and they left the classroom.  
  
"Harry, that was bloody brilliant!"  
  
"Thanks, Sirius."  
  
"Call me Padfoot, but only when itÕs just us, James, Remus, and Peter."  
  
"All right," Harry replied.  
  
The group walked up the stone steps, but stopped as they heard a voice saying something that sounded important.  
  
"LetÕs go listen in," said Sirius.  
  
"Sirius, itÕs not polite to eavesdrop."  
  
"So? They could be talking about us."  
  
"Come on, Moony," said Harry.  
  
Remus reluctantly agreed, so he, Harry, James, and Sirius went over to the door (which was slightly open) and put their ears to it.  
  
"...and when we go to Hogsmeade on Saturday, weÕre going to to to the Three Broomsticks first, and up to the Shrieking Shack. You can deal with them then," said a voice.  
  
"Hey, that sounds like Peter!" Remus whispered.  
  
"Shh!"  
  
"Excellent," said a second voice.  
  
"What are you going to do to them?"  
  
"Oh, nothing really," said the second person with a cold, harsh laugh. "WeÕre just going to make them pay for their pranks. First, weÕre going to stun them, and after we drag them into a safe area, weÕre going to torture...and curse them." The second person, again, gave out a mirthless laugh.  
  
"TheyÕre going to put up a fight," said the first person.  
  
"You think I donÕt know that?"  
  
"I apologise."  
  
"Now," said the second person suddenly after a pause. "LetÕs go our separate ways until Saturday. The students from Potions will undoubtedly be coming our way in a few minutes."  
  
The two people walked to the door, and Harry, Remus, James, and Sirius straightened up. They each wore looks of identical fury. The door opened, revealing Peter, and a burly Slytherin that they had seen, but never spoken to.  
  
"So, Peter," said James in a low, deadly, and dangerous voice. "Decided to betray us, have you?"  
  
Peter flinched, but said nothing.  
  
"You know, James," said Sirius, looking at Peter with distaste, "I think that this little scrap of dirt here deserves to be dealt with. What say you all?" Sirius addressed his question to Harry, James and Remus.  
  
"We agree," said Harry, James, and Remus.  
  
"YouÕre no friend of ours," said James dangerously. "You deserve to go to hell and rot."  
  
Harry didnÕt say anything. He knew that Peter betraying his friends was going to come soon, but not this soon. He didnÕt say anything to express his fury, but did the next best thing; he drew back his fist, and, with a resounding thud, punched Peter in the jaw.  
  
"You do deserve to rot in hell, so stupid son of a b-" Harry couldnÕt speak, for his fury. Instead, he drew out his wand, and pointed it at Peter; Harry uttered a curse, which blasted Peter off his feet. Harry turned around, and he, James, Sirius, and Remus left for the Great Hall for some lunch.  
  
Harry, James, Sirius and Remus, looking mutinous sat down at the Gryffindor table, and began eating lunch. They still looked mutinous when Hermione, Amanda, and Kathleen joined them a few minutes later.  
  
"WhatÕs the matter? Something happen in Potions?" Hermione asked, seeing the looks on the Marauders' (now Harry, James, Sirius, and Remus) faces.  
  
"ItÕs what happened after Potions thatÕs the matter," said Harry, setting down his glass of pumpkin juice rather harder than normal, and making it spill onto the table.  
  
"Why, what happened?" Kathleen asked.  
  
"Well," said Sirius, "the little rat, Peter-" he spat out this name as though there was something unpleasant tasing in his mouth, "-heÕs joined forces with the Slytherins, and he was planning to attack us when we go to Hogsmeade on Saturday."  
  
"Not Peter Pettigrew!" said Lily, as she sat down next to James. She had heard their conversation, and decided to join in.  
  
"No, the Queen of England," said James sarcastically. "Of course Peter Pettigrew! The little rat face is no friend of ours anymore."  
  
~*~  
  
You know what to do 


	10. Memories and Tears

Thanks for your reviews, volleypickle16, SilverKnight7, O'Malley the Alley Cat, baby chaos, babyjayy, and athenakitty!  
  
athenakitty= I'd say the Prf. Klyne reminds Harry of both Lockhart and Snape. And for your last 2 questions...you'll find out later.  
  
Disclaimer: Try and guess what's supposed to go here...go on, I dare you.  
  
~*~  
  
With two weeks left until Christmas, James, Sirius, and Remus were in the 7th year boys dormitory in Gryffindor tower. They were all sitting on JamesÕs bed discussing Quidditch- at least, that was what Sirius and Remus were doing. James, however, was looking towards where Harry usually slept.  
  
"So, James, what do you think?" came RemusÕs voice.  
  
"What?" said James absentmindedly.  
  
Remus frowned.  
  
"Prongs, are you all right?" said Sirius.  
  
"What- Oh. Yeah, IÕm all right."  
  
"Then whyÕve you been staring at HarryÕs bed for the last fifteen minutes?"  
  
"Oh...I dunno..."  
  
"Come on James," said Remus. "Something's bothering you. What is it?"  
  
"I was just thinking about Harry... thereÕs something about him that..." James trailed off.  
  
"Something about him that makes you uncomfortable?" said Sirius.  
  
"No, not that. ItÕs just...thereÕs something suspicious about him. I have the feeling that thereÕs something heÕs not telling us."  
  
Remus thought for a moment. "You have a point there," he said. "I remember one time he called me Moony, and we hadnÕt even told him our nicknames yet."  
  
"And," said Sirius, "when Harry first met Peter, I could see loathing in HarryÕs eyes when we introduced him to Peter, and that was before the little rat face betrayed us."   
  
"ThatÕs true," said James.   
  
"Should we search his trunk? I mean, what if HarryÕs a dark wizard or something?" said Sirius.  
  
"Sirius," said Remus, "just because thereÕs a couple suspicious things about Harry, it doesnÕt mean that we should search through his things."  
  
"But what if he is a dark wizard?" argued Sirius. He went over to HarryÕs trunk and opened it.  
  
"Sirius! DonÕt go searching through HarryÕs things!"  
  
"Why not? WeÕve a right to know he really is," said James, going over to HarryÕs trunk. He started searching through it, along with Sirius; then he let out a gasp, and pulled out an invisibility cloak. "He has an invisibility cloak!"  
  
"Believe it or not, Prongs, but there are other invisibility cloaks other than the one that you own."  
  
"Yeah, I suppose youÕre right," said James, throwing the cloak aside.  
  
Sirius took an old looking bit of parchment out of HarryÕs trunk.  
  
"Hey, isnÕt that..." said James.  
  
"The Marauders Map?" finished Sirius. "Yes. Looks like the little sneak stole it from us."  
  
"But-" said Remus. "He canÕt have. The Map is under my mattress."  
  
He went over to his bed, and pulled the Map out from under the mattress. He showed to the other two.  
  
"How is that possible?" said James. "What if itÕs not even the Map?"  
  
"We can find out," said Remus. "Give that Map to me."   
  
James handed over the Map to Remus, who took out his wand, pointed it at the Map, and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."  
  
Instantly, a map of Hogwarts appeared, showing little moving people as dots.  
  
"I wonder where Harry is?" James thought aloud.  
  
Remus looked all over the Map.  
  
"HeÕs not here," said Remus. "Harry Longhorne isnÕt here."  
  
"IsnÕt that suspicious, Moony?" said James with a scowl.  
  
"Wait a minute," said Sirius, searching the Map quickly with his eyes. "Uh, Prongs? Do you have any relatives you forgot to mention?"  
  
"No, why?"  
  
"Because thereÕs a Harry Potter in the library." Sirius pointed him out.  
  
"Odd," said James. He wiped the Map, and set it aside. "Hey, hereÕs a photo album. We should look through it to find out who or what Harry Longhorne- or Potter- really is."  
  
"Good idea," said Sirius.  
  
James opened the photo album. What he saw stunned him.  
  
~*~  
  
Harry was alone in the library. It was just after dinner, and Harry had thought that he would come in here to see if there was anything he could find about going back in time. He turned the pages of a book which didnÕt have a title; he sighed, and closed the book, and got up, thinking that he should probably get back to the Gryffindor tower. Harry headed out of the library. There were still a few students eating in the Great Hall.   
  
As Harry passed by the corridor in which he knew that the entrance to Ravenclaw common room was, he saw Hermione coming towards him, and she was alone.  
  
"Hi Harry," said Hermione as she gave Harry a hug. "HowÕve you been?"  
  
"Well," said Harry in mock seriousness, "considering I last saw you, what, two hours ago? IÕve been pretty good." He kissed Hermione on the lips. "How about you?"  
  
"Pretty good," she said. "I havenÕt told my friends in Ravenclaw what itÕs for, but theyÕre halfway through finding us a way to get back home."  
  
"Excellent," said Harry. He kissed Hermione again. "I should probably get going on my way to Gryffindor tower. My dad, Sirius, and Remus are probably wondering where I am."  
  
"Good bye then."  
  
Harry gave Hermione one last kiss, and went on his way.  
  
As Harry was walking up the stairs to his dormitory, he heard James, Remus, and Sirius talking about something. Harry wondered what it was, and as he came to the door that led into the seventh year boys dorm, he heard James mention his name. Harry stopped and listened.  
  
"Good idea," Sirius was saying.  
  
Harry heard a gasp come from the room, and walked in.  
  
There was James, sitting on HarryÕs bed, and on his lap lay HarryÕs photo album, and it was open. Remus and Sirius were crowded around James, looking at the album. As soon as Harry entered the room, James, Sirius, and Remus quickly looked up at him. HarryÕs eyes widened.  
  
"Why were you searching through my things? And why do you have my photo album?"  
  
Harry walked over to James, and took his photo album away from James and closed it. Harry put it back into his trunk, and then turned around to look at the three seventh years, anger and fear etched all over his face.  
  
"Why were you looking through my things?" said Harry, trying to keep his voice even.  
  
"We thought...we thought..." Sirius trailed off under HarryÕs furious stare.  
  
"You thought that I was a Death Eater? You thought that I worked for Voldemort?" Harry spat out VoldemortÕs name in disgust. "I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT I DO NOT WORK FOR THAT...THAT....HE DESTROYED MY FAMILY? WHY WOULD I WANT TO WORK FOR AN EVIL GIT LIKE THAT?" Harry paused breathing hard. He looked furiously at the three Marauders.  
  
"Who are you, really? What do you really look like?" said James. He held out HarryÕs photo album.  
  
Harry leaned forward, and saw a picture of himself as a baby, being held by his parents.  
  
"We looked at a certain Map that we have, and it showed you up as Harry Potter. Care to explain that?"  
  
Harry sighed, and put his face in his hands. He concentrated hard, and with a small pop, had changed back into his normal self: black, unruly hair and startlingly green eyes. He looked up at James. All three of the Marauders gasped.  
  
"Bloody hell!" whispered Sirius. "He looks just like you, Prongs!"  
  
"Except for the eyes?" Harry supplied. "I got my eyes from my mother."  
  
"But whoÕs your mother?" said James.   
  
"James." Remus pointed to the album, at Lily.  
  
"Is that-?"   
  
"YES!" James punched the air with his fist. "I finally get Lily!"  
  
"But that must mean..." Remus looked from Harry to James. James suddenly understood.  
  
"Are you from the future?" Sirius asked. Harry nodded.  
  
"So..." said James. "Does that mean that IÕm your...dad?"  
  
Harry nodded, and looked at the floor.  
  
"Blimey!" said Sirius. "But...how is it possible?"  
  
"I can show you all, if you like," said Harry. "That is, if youÕve got a Pensieve."  
  
"Can we see what your life was like?" asked James, staring at his son from the future. Harry nodded.  
  
Remus went over to his own bed and from under it he pulled out a Pensieve. He brought it over to Harry, who took it, and started to put his memories into it; even though he didnÕt really want to be doing this, he had to show James, Sirius, and Remus his memories, otherwise, Harry reasoned, theyÕd probably still be a bit skeptical about him.  
  
Harry put in all the memories of his that would explain how he, Harry, knew about certain things (the Marauders Map), and memories that would explain who he, Harry, was. Harry also put in memories of him and his friends, memories that would just show James, Sirius, and Remus what his life was, or had been, like. Harry also reluctantly put in his less fond memories, saying to himself that James, Sirius and Remus needed to see them. Besides, Harry thought, Dumbledore can just wipe their memories when Hermione and I leave for our own time...   
  
"All right," said Harry when he was finished. "You three go in first, and IÕll follow."  
  
James nodded, and bent his face in towards the pensieve; a moment later, he had vanished. Remus and Sirius followed, and then it was HarryÕs turn. He put his face close to the pensieve, and as soon as his nose touched the swirling thoughts, he disappeared from the dormitory, and into his own memories.  
  
Harry landed into the memory of the moment when he found Hagrid barging into the little shack on the rock when Harry was just eleven years old. He saw James, Sirius, and Remus standing to the side, and he went to join them.  
  
Harry and the three Marauders watched on as Hagrid explained to Harry that he, Harry, was a wizard, and how HarryÕs parents had been killed. Harry looked over at James, whose face had gone pale. Harry looked back on the scene, as Aunt Petunia said that her sister had been a freak. Then the memory changed.   
  
Harry saw himself in Diagon Alley with Hagrid, buying his school supplies. He saw himself and Ron on the train. All the memories of HarryÕs first year at Hogwarts flew by, and Harry saw himself battling with Quirrel for the SorcererÕs Stone. Then that memory was gone, and HarryÕs second year memories flew by, and this time Harry saw himself battling with the Basilisk, and his encounter with Tom Riddle. And then on to HarryÕs third year memories, where Harry and the three Marauders saw the Firebolt being given to Harry. The next memory to come up was the one where he, Harry, and Ron and Hermione were in the Shrieking Shack.  
  
Harry, James, and Remus and Sirius watched on as everything was being explained to Harry and his friends by Lupin and the older Sirius. Then Snape came in, and was knocked unconcious by Harry, Ron, and Hermione.  
  
James, Sirius, and Remus cheered at this.  
  
Then they saw Scabbers being changed into Peter Pettigrew, and the whole confrontation with him, and then they saw Pettigrew escaping from Ron after Sirius, as a dog, had dragged werewolf Lupin off into the forest; the encounter with the dementors, Harry and Hermione saving Sirius. All of this went by, and then onto HarryÕs fourth year.  
  
Harry smiled at seeing himself get the golden egg from the dragon, and watched on as he rescued Ron and FleurÕs little sister from the lake. Then Harry watched on as he found himself going through the maze at the third task.   
  
Harry saw himself take the Triwizard Cup with Cedric, he saw Cedric be murdered by Voldemort. Harry watched VoldemortÕs rebirth, Voldemort torturing Harry, their duel. And then Harry watched on as his memory self watched his parents come out of VoldemortÕs wand.   
  
Harry glanced over at James, whose face was even more pale, and at Remus and Sirius, who wore looks of shock. Harry turned his eyes back to the scene as his memory self took the Cup and Cedric back to Hogwarts.  
  
Then the memory changed again, to HarryÕs fifth year.   
  
Harry watched on in silence, until, of course, it came to the memory of the battle of the older Sirius, Tonks, Lupin, Mad-Eye, and Kingsley. Harry didnÕt really think heÕd be able to watch this; he tried to turn away, but found that, for some reason, he couldnÕt, and so he was forced to watch again, as his godfather fell through the veil.  
  
Harry felt tears slide down his face, but he kept watching.   
  
The memories of his sixth year flew by.  
  
Harry felt even more tears come down his face as he watched the battle between him, Hermione, and Ron battling the Deat Eaters. Even more tears were coming down his face now, as he watched his best friend die.  
  
Then the memories slowly disolved, and James, Sirius, Remus, and Harry found themselves being pushed out of the pensieve, and found themselves back in their dormitory.  
  
All of them were silent. Sirius had gone white as he had watched himself die in HarryÕs memories, and he remained so now.  
  
"Bloody hell, Harry..." said Sirius.  
  
James looked over at Harry, who had his face in his hands; he went over to Harry, and embraced his future son. Harry, who had been crying silently, now completley broke down in JamesÕs arms. James hugged Harry tighter as a tear fell down his own face.   
  
~*~  
  
Please review 


	11. A Confession of Love

Thanks for you reviews, dreamcatcher386, Tofty, gaul1, volleypickle16, lauren, babyjayy, athenakitty, and O'Malley the Alley Cat!  
  
athenakitty= Yes to the first two questions. But as for the third question, yes, but obviiously not right away. :-)  
  
volleypickle16= :-) :-) :-)  
  
Disclaimer: *SIGH* I don't own HP, all right? :-)  
  
Beware of furry creatures who live in the jungle and eat bananas,  
  
~*~  
  
After Harry had broken down crying in JamesÕs arms, Remus and Sirius went over to them, and each gave Harry a hug. Then, when Harry had finally fell asleep, James, Sirius, and Remus had discussed what they had seen in the pensieve. Each of them, of course, was shocked to find that James and Sirius were dead in HarryÕs time. Finally, they too went to bed, with the nightÕs events on their minds.  
  
By the next day, because Harry had gone around looking almost exactly like James, everyone in the school knew that Harry was a Metamorphagus. They also knew that HarryÕs natural look was when he looked like James.   
  
Harry had told Hermione all about the situation with the pensieve, and luckily she wasnÕt mad at Harry. On the contrary, she was glad that James knew that Harry was his son from the future.   
  
Lily, who still didnÕt know that Harry was JamesÕs son from the future, as well as her son from the future, thought that Harry looking like James was very odd. Except for the eyes.  
  
~*~   
  
Finally, it was one week until Christmas, and Professor McGonagall had gone around as usual and collected the names of people who would be staying at Hogwarts. Harry, James, Sirius, and Lupin put their names down, as well as Hermione, Kathleen, and Amanda, and, to JamesÕs pleasure, Lily.  
  
"So, Harry," said Sirius. "Looking forward to Charms?"  
  
It was a little before breakfast, and Harry, James, Remus, and Sirius were walking down the marble staircase towards the Great Hall. Harry grinned. They would be in Charms with a few of the Ravenclaw seventh years, and that included Hermione.  
  
"You know I am," said Harry.  
  
The group walked into the Great Hall and sat down at the Gryffindor table.  
  
"I wonder why youÕre looking forward to Charms," said James sarcastically, but he smiled when he said it.  
  
Harry just rolled his eyes, and started on his breakfast of porridge and toast. When breakfast was over, and Harry was just getting up from the table, Dumbledore came over to him.  
  
"Er...Hi, Professor," said Harry.  
  
"Good morning, Harry," Dumbledore replied with a twinkle in his eyes. "I was wondering if I might have a word with you up in my office before you go off to your next class?"  
  
"Why do you need to talk to him, Professor?Ó said James.  
  
"IÕm afraid that is a matter between myself and Harry, Mr. Potter."  
  
Harry got up, and followed Dumbledore out of the Hall, and James turned to Sirius and Remus and starting muttering something to them.  
  
~*~  
  
"What did you want to talk to me about, Professor?Ó said Harry, as soon as he and Dumbledore had reached DumbledoreÕs office.  
  
Dumbledore went over to the chair behind his desk. He twiddled his thumbs, and apparently was distracted by this. Harry cleared his throat, and Dumbledore stopped twiddling his thumbs and looked at Harry with a stern expression on his face.  
  
"I just wanted to let you know that I have found out that your friend, Miss Granger, has a few of the students from her own house working on ways to go forward in time.Ó Dumbledore paused, and observed Harry through those blue eyes of his; Harry had hung his head guiltily. ÒI would also like to let you know,Ó said Dumbledore cheerfully, "that because of this, I am much closer to finding a way for you to get back to your own time."  
  
Harry looked up at Dumbledore; sensing that Dumbledore was through talking to him, he moved towards the door.  
  
"There is also another thing I need to discuss with you."  
  
Harry stopped, and turned around.  
  
"What would that be?Ó said Harry.  
  
"I have learned that James, Sirius, and Remus now know your true identity, and that you showed them your memories, and they now know what is to happen to them in the future."  
  
Again, Harry hung his head.  
  
"IÕm not going to punish you...Mr. Potter-Ó Harry looked at Dumbledore, Òhowever, once you leave, I will have to wipe their memories."  
  
Harry nodded. "I understand."  
  
"Very well,Ó said Dumbledore, with a smile and a wave. "You may go."  
  
Harry walked over to the door, opened it, and went down the moving spiral staircase, and out from behind the stone gargoyle. He was thinking about the conversation that he had just had with Dumbledore. At least Dumbledore wasnÕt angry with Harry for telling James, Sirius, and Remus who he, Harry, really was. Heck, Harry could even tell Lily who he really was, or at least let find out about it. It wouldnÕt do any harm, really, Harry reasoned. Dumbledore would just wipe their memories anyway before. Harry walked up the marble staircase, which was crowded with students coming out of the Great Hall, as breakfast had just finished. James, Sirius, and Remus spotted Harry, and ran up the stairs to catch up.  
  
"You all right?Ó Harry asked James. James had a look on his face. It was though he had decided to do something, and nothing could stop him, and was resigned to his fate as if he didnÕt care that whatever he was planning would go wrong or not; he just wanted to get it over and done with. "What are you planning on doing?Ó Harry added, catching the look on JamesÕs face.  
  
"YouÕll find out once we reach the Charms corridor,Ó Remus whispered in HarryÕs ear.  
  
Harry, wondering what was going to happen, was naturally curious about it. He walked with James, Sirius, and Remus to the Charms corridor, and, when the reached it, Lily Evans brushed past them.  
  
"Evans!Ó James called out. Lily turned around. "Will you PLEASE go out with me?"  
  
Lily considered James for a moment. "No,Ó she said.  
  
She turned back around, and was just beginning to set off for Charms, when James took out his wand. He looked determined.  
  
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" James yelled, and out of his wand burst a dazzling patronus of an eagle. James twirled his wand a bit, and the eagle patronus flew in front of Lily, who stopped, and stared at what the eagle patronus was doing. It had some how made the shape of a heart, and, inside, the eagle was writing the words: 'I love you, Lily Evans! Please go out with me!' This and the eagle stayed in the air for a short while, and then both disappeared.   
  
For a moment, every student in the Charms corridor paused. They were all looking at either James, who looked nervous, and Lily. Then Lily turned around, and looked at James. James looked back. Then a broad smile crept onto LilyÕs face, and she walked right up to James.  
  
"How can I resist that?Ó she said. ÒOf course IÕll go out with you.Ó And she wrapped her arms around James, and kissed him on the lips.  
  
~*~  
  
Minutes later, the seventh year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws were in the Charms class room, talking about what had just happened. Professor Flitwick had put the students into pairs, or rather, he let the students choose a partner. Harry, of course, teamed up with Hermione; Remus teamed up with Sirius; and James partnered Lily.  
  
Today, they were working on the Warming Charm, which, if you were cold, could be used to surround yourself in a little bubble of warmness, or warm air. Everyone thought that it would come in very useful, as winter was coming upon them, and it was beginning to get cold outside. Harry and Hermione already knew how to do this particular charm, of course, because in his and HermioneÕs own time, Hermione had found a book of advanced charms. So, because they already knew how to do the charm, and because everyone else was talking and laughing while they practiced it, Harry and Hermione fell into conversation about what had happened the night before they left for Hogwarts in room eleven of the Leaky Cauldron.  
  
"Ever since that night... I just canÕt stop thinking about it,Ó said Harry in a low voice.  
  
"Me too,Ó said Hermione, also in a low voice. "That night was pretty amazing, wasnÕt it?"  
  
"Yeah, it was...Ó Harry agreed. "I wish we could have another amazing time like we did then..."  
  
"Well, we could, you know...there is the Room of Requirement."  
  
"I dunno..."  
  
"Oh, come on, Harry," said Hermione. "We could go there after this class."  
  
"But then weÕd be missing Defense Against the Dark Arts, and I hardly think youÕd want to miss a class."  
  
"I checked, and weÕre not doing anything important in that class- just reviewing." Hermione looked at Harry, who grinned.  
  
"All right,Ó said Harry. "But weÕll go to our houses, and act as if weÕre getting things for our next class. IÕll meet you at the end of the Charms corridor."  
  
"All right," said Hermione. She was going kiss Harry, but right then Professor Flitwick stopped by, and asked to see their progress on the Warming Charm.  
  
~*~  
  
"Where's Harry?" said James worriedly. It was after lunch, and James, Remus, and Sirius were in their dorm. "Hi didnÕt show up for DADA or lunch."  
  
"Relax, Prongs," said Sirius. "IÕm sure HarryÕs all right."  
  
"How do you know? What if Wormtail got to him?"  
  
"YouÕre worrying too much, Prongs,Ó said Sirius.  
  
"No IÕm not!"  
  
"Calm down, you two,Ó said Remus. "IÕm sure HarryÕs all right." And, as if to prove his point, Harry came into the room right then.  
  
"Hello, all," said Harry cheerfully, putting his invisibility cloak in his trunk.  
  
"WhereÕve you been?" said James sternly. "I was worried something bad had happened to you!"  
  
"Nothing bad did happen to me. And why were you so worried?"  
  
"YouÕre my son from the future! I have a right to be worried!"  
  
Harry looked startled for a moment then his expression softened. He smiled. "IÕm fine, so thereÕs no need to worry."  
  
James looked at Harry suspiciously, but said nothing more about it. Instead, he turned to Sirius.  
  
"So what were you saying before I asked where Harry was?"  
  
"I was saying that we should prank the Slytherins."  
  
"YouÕre planning a prank?" said Harry interestedly. "I have an idea for one."  
  
"And what is it?" Remus asked.  
  
Harry told them his idea, and Sirius, James, and Remus burst out laughing.  
  
"ThatÕs brilliant!" said James, wiping a tear of laughter from his face.   
  
"Yeah,Ó said Sirius, laughing, "you really are your fatherÕs son, Harry."  
  
"I just hope we donÕt get into too much trouble for this,Ó said Remus, smiling.  
  
"Oh Moony, donÕt take the fun out of it,Ó said Sirius.  
  
"I wasnÕt. And I wasnÕt talking about the teachers. I was talking about Lily."  
  
"What do you mean?" said James, who had, by now, stopped laughing. "SheÕs not going to hate me because of this. I told her that I was planning to prank the Slytherins with my friends, and she said it was fine."  
  
"ItÕs okay, then, Moony,Ó said Harry, grinning. "And besides, maybe Lily will give Prongs here another big kiss like she did earlier."  
  
"And maybe more than a big kiss afterwards," said Sirius. "If you know what I mean...."   
  
James threw his pillow at Sirius.  
  
"But what about Harry here?" said James.  
  
"IÕve already given Hermione more than a big kiss...If you know what I mean," said Harry, sitting down on his bed.  
  
Sirius looked surprised, as did James and Remus.  
  
"No!" said Sirius. "Really?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"When?"  
  
"Before she and I went back in time, and today, after Charms."  
  
"So thatÕs why you werenÕt anywhere around!"  
  
"Where?Ó said James.  
  
"Room of Requirement. Why?" Harry answered.  
  
James looked down at his feet. "Just curious..."  
  
"YouÕre not planning on doing that with Lily, are you?Ó said Remus sternly. And without waiting for an answer, he went on. "Do you realize you could get her pregnant? And before we graduate? I wouldnÕt be surprised if thatÕs already happened with Hermione. You should at least have waited til you were married."  
  
"ThatÕs an idea..." said Harry thoughtfully.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I could ask Hermione to marry me...next time we go to Hogsmeade, I could get a ring...."  
  
"You mean youÕre actually going to ask her to marry you?" said James.  
  
"Yes, and my mindÕs made up, so donÕt try to stop me. IÕve known her since she and I were eleven."  
  
"Well, good luck, Harry," said Sirius.  
  
~*~  
  
Review, please! 


	12. Decisions

Thanks for your reviews, dreamcatcher386, O'Malley the Alley Cat, The Bookworm, Jared, volleypickle16, babyjayy, athenakitty, and Neo Anderson!  
  
athenakitty= Yes, eventually, and yes.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own the monkeys- I mean, Harry Potter  
  
~*~  
  
Saturday morning dawned, the morning that also happened to be the day when third years and above visited Hogsmeade. Before everyone went to Hogsmeade, however, they had to eat breakfast. And thatÕs just what all the students and teachers were doing...or thatÕs what most of the students were doing. The Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor tables were all filled with students (with the exception of Gryffindor, because Harry, James, and Sirius werenÕt there yet). No one, however, was at the Slytherin table, and it was this, more than anything else, that made everyone wonder where they were.  
  
Harry, James, and Sirius came into breakfast when everyone (except the Slytherins) was well into breakfast. They went over and sat by Remus and Lily, and Hermione, who saw Harry, James, and Sirius walk in, went over to the Gryffindor table and sat down with them.  
  
"WhereÕve you been, Harry?" said Hermione.  
  
"Oh..er...nowhere," said Harry, but his guilty look gave him away.  
  
Hermione looked worried. "What did you do?" she asked.  
  
"ItÕs not something that he did do, itÕs something that he, Sirius, and I did," said James, reaching across Hermione to get to the jug of pumpkin juice.  
  
"TheyÕre pranking the Slytherins," said Lily.  
  
"You mean we pranked the Slytherins," said Sirius.  
  
Remus sighed. "What did you do to them?"   
  
"YouÕll find out," said James evasively.  
  
"When?" asked Lily.  
  
Sirius looked at his watch. "Any minute now," he said.  
  
And as soon as Sirius said this, the doors to the Great Hall burst open, and in came the Slytherins, but they werenÕt wearing their school robes. What they were wearing was something quite interesting, to say the least. Each of the Slytherins was wearing a fluffy, cream colored tu-tu, except for Snape, who happened to be wearing the most glamorous tu-tu. It was fluffy, pink, and it sparkled with every movement. Everyone in the Hall burst out laughing, even the teachers. All the Slytherin were dancing and twirling, as if in a ballet recital, to a song from The Nutcracker. Finally, after everyone had been laughing long enough, and after the Slytherins had been humiliated enough, Dumbledore stood up.  
  
"I must say!" he said. "That was quite...er...entertaining, though maybe not for some of us." Dumbledore waved his wand in the direction of the Slytherins, and they were suddenly wearing their proper attire. All of them had looks of identical humiliation on their faces. "Let us finish breakfast, and then those of you who are in third year and over can go to Hogsmeade!"  
  
~*~  
  
As soon as Harry walked outside, Lily and James came up to him. Sirius was also with Harry, as well as Remus.  
  
"James tells me that youÕre going to get an engagement ring for Hermione," said Lily.  
  
"Yeah, I was planning on it, but..."  
  
"But what?"  
  
Harry sighed. "I dunno...I was just thinking...maybe I just rushed into this. I should have thought more about it before deciding to ask Hermione to marry me."  
  
"So now youÕre regretting making this decision?" James asked. Remus and Sirius were listening to every word.  
  
"I dunno..."  
  
"Look, Harry," said Lily. "How long have you known Hermione?"  
  
"Since we were eleven."  
  
"Have you always had feelings for her?"  
  
"Well...Kind of..." said Harry.  
  
"So that means you love her, am I right?" Lily asked.  
  
"Yes, I do love her," Harry replied.   
  
"Then go on with you plan! Get her an engagement ring. Ask her to marry you," said Lily.  
  
None of them said anything for a while, and as they walked past the gates of Hogwarts, a slight wind came that made everyone turn up the collars of their cloaks.  
  
"So when are you planning on asking her to marry you?" said Sirius.  
  
"Shh...be quiet, I donÕt want anyone to hear us...especially Hermione."  
  
"SheÕs staying at Hogwarts," said James. Harry didnÕt need to ask why. Hermione was working on finding a way of getting them back to their own time.  
  
"So when are you going to ask her to marry you?" said Sirius again.  
  
"On Christmas. My present to her is going to be the engagement ring."  
  
"ThatÕs so sweet!" Lily said.  
  
The rest of the way to Hogsmeade, Lily, James, Sirius, and Remus talked about different ways of presenting the ring to Hermione. They gave Harry a lot of pretty good ideas, and by the time they reached Hogsmeade, Harry knew exactly how he was going to do it.  
  
"Bye, Harry!" said Lily and James as they left Harry at the front of the jewelry shop.  
  
"Yeah, bye," said Remus.  
  
"Pick out a good ring!" said Sirius.  
  
"DonÕt worry, I will," said Harry, waving goodbye to his friends (or future mum, dad, godfather). Harry walked inside the store, which had only a couple people in it, though they werenÕt Hogwarts students. The two people, Harry realized, worked at the jewelry shop.  
  
"How can we help you?" said the woman.  
  
"IÕm looking to buy a...an engagement ring for my girlfriend," said Harry.  
  
"Well, we have a nice little selection over here," said the woman. She went over to a glass case, and took out a small, red velvet platform, about the size of a large shoe box, and put it on the counter.   
  
Harry went over to it, and looked at the rings. A couple rings caught his eye. One had a thin, silver band with a single diamond; the other had a thin gold band with a small ruby, and on either side of the ruby was small diamond. None of the other rings were quite as pretty as the first two he saw, but they would look good on any girlÕs finger. One had a silver band with sapphires and emeralds; another one had a goldish-silver band, with emeralds, rubies, and diamonds; and another had a gold band with emeralds an opal.  
  
"Have you made your decision?" the woman said.  
  
Harry nodded, and pointed to the ring that had the thin gold band with a small ruby and diamonds.  
  
"Excellent choice, IÕm sure your girlfriend will love it," said the old woman, smiling. "Chester here ring up the price."  
  
Harry went over to the register, and paid for the ring, which, as Chester said, would magically grow or shrink to fit HarryÕs girfriendÕs finger. Chester put the ring in a small, blue velvet box, which Harry took, and put in the pocket of his robe. With a thank you, Harry smiled and left the shop to go find James, Lily, Sirius, or Remus.  
  
~*~  
  
Please Review! 


	13. Godric's Hollow

Thanks for your reviews, dreamcatcher386, Tofty, Jared, The Bookworm, O'Malley the Alley Cat, gaul1, volleypickle16, and athenakitty!  
  
athenakitty= You'll find out. :-)  
  
Jared= I wondered that too. It's intresting to think about.  
  
Disclaimer: No, I don't own Harry Potter. Sorry! :-)  
  
~*~  
  
The morning that Christmas break started finally dawned, and Harry, James, Sirius, and Remus packed up their things, and got into the familiar thestral-drawn carriages down towards the Hogwarts express. Harry and Hermione to be staying with Sirius and James, and JamesÕs parents for the duration of the Christmas holidays. Harry was overjoyed at the prospect of actually meeting his grandparents.  
  
During the ride to platform 9 3/4, Harry, Hermione, James, Lily, Sirius, and Remus all shared a compartment. Hermione, as usual, was reading a book (this time it was about time traveling). Sirius and James were playing WizardÕs chess, and Harry, Lily, and Remus were talking about how glad they were that it was the Christmas holidays. Throughout the whole ride to platform 9 3/4, Harry noticed that Sirius kept looking from Hermione to Harry with a smile on his face.  
  
Finally, the Hogwarts express stopped at platform 9 3/4. Everyone clambered off the train, and headed onto the platform to meet their relatives.  
  
"You must be Harry and Hermione! James has told us so much about you!" said Mrs. Potter on seeing Harry and Hermione.  
  
"Uh...are you sure we didnÕt have twins?" said Mr. Potter. "Harry and James look almost identical...except for the eyes..."  
  
"I got the eyes from my mum," said Harry. He smiled.  
  
"Well, mum, dad, shall we get going?" said James.  
  
"Certainly," said Mr. Potter.  
  
Sirius, Harry, Hermione, and James waved good-bye to Remus and Lily (James gave Lily a good-bye kiss), and they walked out of the hidden entrance to platform 9 3/4, and towards the car. Mr. Potter had had the car magically expanded from the inside, so, of course, everyone fit in nice and snug, along with their trunks and Hedwig.  
  
"So, Harry, who are your parents? IÕd like to meet them," said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"TheyÕre dead," said Harry quietly. "They died when I was a baby."  
  
"IÕm so sorry that happened," said Mrs. Potter. "If..if you donÕt mind my asking...how did they-?"  
  
"Die?" said Harry.  
  
"You donÕt have to answer."  
  
"ItÕs all right," said Harry. "My parents were murdered by Voldemort." Harry spat out VoldemortÕs name bitterly.  
  
Everyone was quiet after that. Harry looked out the window at the rolling grasslands, and the growing darkness until the sun set completely, and it was night. They arrived at JamesÕs house, which was in a little town. Mr. Potter pulled into the driveway and stopped the car.  
  
"WhatÕs this town called?" Hermione asked. "ItÕs very pretty."  
  
"This is GodricÕs Hollow," said Mr. Potter.  
  
Harry, who had been dragging his trunk towards the front door, stopped dead in his tracks.  
  
"What did you say it was called?" he asked shakily, though he had heard Mr. Potter perfectly.  
  
"GodricÕs Hollow," said Mr. Potter. Hermione clapped her hands to her mouth.  
  
"Anything the matter, Harry dear?" asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Er- no," said Harry. James, Sirius, and Hermione were all looking at them, for harry had told the three of them that this was were his parents had been killed by Voldemort that fateful night. "IÕm all right."  
  
Mr. Potter unlocked the front door, and led Harry, Hermione, James, and Sirius inside. Mrs. Potter followed, and closed the door. The house was very large, like a mansion, but a little smaller.  
  
"James, show Harry and Hermione to their room. And Jeremiah," Mrs. Potter addressed her husband, Òyou can can help get the luggage into the kidsÕ rooms."  
  
"Mum, weÕre not kids," said James.  
  
"All right, Catherine," said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Good, now, IÕm going to fix you all something to eat."   
  
Harry smiled after Mrs. Potter as she hurried off to the kitchen. She reminded him of Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Well, letÕs get going," said Mr. Potter. He took a hold of HermioneÕs trunk, and started up the stairs. Harry, Hermione, James, and Sirius followed.  
  
Mr. Potter showed Harry where he would be sleeping, and left him there alone. Harry was grateful for a few minutes of peace and quiet. He looked around the room. For some reason, it seemed very familiar. Then he remembered. This had been his bedroom, where he, as a baby, was when Voldemort attempted to kill him. Harry shuddered.  
  
In the room, however, was not a crib, but a bed, with a dark blue bed spread. Harry put his trunk down at the edge of the bead, and HedwigÕs cage on the desk that was right under a window. There was also a larger window, and it had a window seat, but Harry didnÕt go and seat on it; he needed to put his things away.  
  
Harry put his clothes in a wardrobe which was right next to the door. After he had done this, Harry went over to the window and opened it, and then let Hedwig out of her cage. Harry watched as his owl soared out into the night sky, and then decided to go and see Hermione.  
  
Harry located HermioneÕs room (which was two doors down from his room) and knocked on the door. Hermione answered, and led Harry into her room. There was also a window seat in this room. In fact, this room was almost identical to HarryÕs, except the bed had a soft red colored bedspread, with pink polka dots all over it.  
  
"Harry, I didnÕt realize that we would be staying here, of all places," Hermione said. She finished putting her things away, and turned to face harry. "I mean, this is where..." she trailed off.  
  
Harry shrugged. "ItÕs all right," he said, then, because he couldnÕt think of anything else to say, he added, "You look beautiful." And it was true. Hermione had on a sparkly, red, long-sleeved shirt, and a khaki skirt. Her hair hung in delicate curls around her face.  
  
"Thanks," said Hermione. She wrapped her arms around Harry, who placed his arms around HermioneÕs waist.  
  
"Think we should go down for dinner?" said Harry. He leaned closer towards Hermione.  
  
"We will, in a few seconds," said Hermione. She, too, leaned forward, until her lips touched HarryÕs. The stayed that way for a while, locked in eachotherÕs embraces, until someone clearing their throat made Harry and Hermione break apart.  
  
Harry and Hermione looked towards the door, and there stood James and Sirius, both of who where smiling.   
  
"Now, now, none of that," said James.   
  
Harry rolled his eyes.  
  
"Time for dinner! Come on," said Sirius.  
  
Harry and Hermione followed James and Sirius down the stairs and into the kitchen.   
  
Dinner was an enjoyable affair, and after everyone had eaten as much as they could, James, Sirius, Harry, and Hermione went up to bed. Harry didnÕt go to sleep right away. He lay awake in bed, staring up at the ceiling, going over in his head about how glad he was to have met his grandparents. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.  
  
"Come in," said Harry. The door opened, and Hermione entered. She wasnÕt wearing her red night dress, but a pink pyjama shirt, with pyjama bottoms to match.  
  
"Harry, can I sleep in here with you? IÕm kind of lonely being in my room by myself."  
  
"Sure you can," said Harry. He scooted aside to make room, and Hermione crawled into bed besides Harry. She snuggled up to him, and Harry placed his arm around her. A few minutes later, they each fell asleep.  
  
~*~  
  
Three days later, Harry, James, and Sirius were playing a game of catch-the-snitch. It was afternoon, just after lunch, and James, Sirius, and Harry were having a great time. Hermione was watching from the ground. At the moment, the four seventh years were alone. Nothing valuable in the house had been broken yet, of course, if it had, it could have been repaired with a simple spell.  
  
After the game of catch-the-snitch was over, everyone went inside the house for a late afternoon snack.   
  
"James, how come you donÕt have any food in here?" Sirius complained, opening several cupboards and finding them empty.  
  
"Because you keep eating it all," James replied. "The cupboards will magically fill up later. In the meantime, why donÕt we go to Diagon Alley and hang around. My parents wonÕt be home til this evening."  
  
"Are you sure we should?" Hermione said. "Why donÕt we leave them a note saying where weÕve gone?"  
  
"Good idea," said James. He grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill and quickly scribbled a note the Mr. and Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Come on, Harry," said Sirius. He, Harry, James, and Hermione went over to the fireplace, and before long, they were at Diagon Alley.  
  
James, Harry, Sirius, and Hermione walked around Diagon Alley for a couple hours, and stopped by Florean FortescueÕs for some ice-cream. After that, they went into ZonkoÕs, where Sirius, James, and Harry bought a few items that they could use to prank people back at school. They spent about an hour in ZonkoÕs, and it wasnÕt until Hermione alerted them of the time that they knew that they should be getting back.  
  
"I swear, Harry," said Hermione, shaking her head. "You get more like James every day."  
  
"Why shouldnÕt he?" said James as everyone walked up the stairs to HarryÕs room. "HeÕs my future son! I like to think to think IÕm being a good influence on him."  
  
Hermione replied by rolling her eyes.  
  
~*~  
  
Review, please! 


	14. A Proposal

Thanks for your reviews, Jared, dreamcatcher386, volleypickle16, O'Malley the Alley Cat, gaul1, athenakitty, lizzie, and babyjayy!  
  
athenakitty= You'll find out.  
  
Jared= 'Jeremiah' is the name is James's dad.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
  
~*~  
  
Finally, a few days after Harry, Hermione, James, and Sirius went to Diagon Alley, it was Christmas. Christmas morning, to be exact. There was a large Christmas tree in the living room of the Potter residence, and under it was a very large pile of presents. No one had entered the living room yet, however, because it was only two hours after the sun had risen, and everyone was still asleep. But it wouldnÕt stay that way for long.  
  
James and Sirius were both awake, and were standing outside HarryÕs bedroom door; they were speaking in low whispers. Their conversation came to a conclusion, and they both shoved the door open, and marched loudly into the room, waking Harry, who had been having a very good dream about himself and Hermione.  
  
Harry groaned and put his pillow over his head.  
  
"Why do you two have to come barging in here at eight oÕclock in the morning?" said HarryÕs muffled voice.  
  
"Because itÕs Christmas," said James, pulling HarryÕs pillow away. "We want to get everyone up so we can open presents."  
  
"And so we can see the look on HermioneÕs face when you ask her to marry you," said Sirius grinning.  
  
"Shh!" Harry sat up. "I donÕt want her to hear you!"  
  
"Harry, her room is two doors down; I hardly think sheÕd be able to hear us talking, let alone whispering," said James. "Now get up so we can go and wake her."  
  
Harry didnÕt really want to get up from his nice, warm bed, but he did so anyway, though somewhat reluctantly. As soon as Harry was out of bed, he, James, and Sirius went over to HermioneÕs room, and, after waking her up, the four went to Mr. and Mrs. PotterÕs room to wake them up.  
  
"WeÕre up! WeÕre up!" said Mr. Potter in response to his son shouting at them to get up.  
  
"Good," said James in reply. "Hurry, I want to get down stairs!"  
  
Harry shook his head in amusement. "Honestly, James, you remind me of a little kid, the way youÕre so excited."  
  
"So?"  
  
Harry didnÕt answer, but continued smiling in amusement.  
  
"I want you four to get dressed, and then weÕll all go down stairs, all right?" said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Why do we have to get dressed?" asked Sirius.  
  
"Because your friends Remus and Lily are coming, remember?"  
  
"Oh yeah!" said James.  
  
"Then, scoot!"  
  
James, Sirius, Hermione, and Harry scooted from the room, and went to their own rooms to get dress. When they had done so, they walked, or ran, rather, down the stairs and into the living room, where Mr. and Mrs. Potter, and Remus and Lily were waiting.  
  
"Lily!" James went over to Lily, and pulled her into a kiss. When he pulled away, Mr. Potter was smiling, and Mrs. Potter had her eyebrows raised, but there was also a slight smile on her face.  
  
"Uh...shall we get started?" suggested Mr. Potter.  
  
Everyone nodded eagerly, and the present opening began.  
  
Everyone received wonderful presents. Harry got a red and gold sweater from Mr. and Mrs. Potter; from James, he received a golden snitch that he could use to practice his reflexes with; Remus gave Harry a book about famous Seekers; from Sirius he received an abundance of joke items; Lily gave him a blue and gold quill that never needed to be filled with ink, because it was self-filling; and Hermione gave Harry a watch with a leather band, with tiny lion heads at the hands of the watch, and if you touched the watch with your wand, you could change it to a digital watch. Hermione, too, was delighted with her presents, as were Mr. and Mrs. Potter, James, Sirius, Remus, and Lily.  
  
"Hey, Harry," said Mr. Potter. "What did you get Hermione?"   
  
Mr. Potter, of course, hadnÕt been told of HarryÕs plan to propose to Hermione. Mrs. Potter, knew, however, because Harry had gone to her to ask for suggestions on how he should pop the big question.  
  
"Well...er..."  
  
"You mean you didnÕt get her anything?" said James in mock shock. "Why, I thought that IÕve been a good influence on you!"  
  
"I got her something!"  
  
"What did you get me?" Hermione asked as she sat down on the couch.  
  
"Er..." Harry reached into the pocket of his jeans, and pulled out a small velvet box. He was about to propose, so why was he so nervous? "Er...." Harry paused. "Before I give you this, IÕd...IÕd just like to say something.... I remember when I first met you on the Hogwarts express, I thought you were one of the bossiest people IÕve ever met. I remember...Ron...and myself, rescuing you from the troll, and after that, we all become friends. Over the years that IÕve known you, IÕve grown to love you. YouÕre my best friend, and I wouldnÕt trade that for anything in the world. In fact, youÕre more than my best friend, youÕre so amazing, the most amazing girl IÕve ever met, or known. I love you Hermione, and nothing anyone says or does is going to change that; I want to have kids with you; I want to spend the rest of my life with you,Ó Harry kneeled, and opened the velvet box, revealing the ring that had the thin gold band, a ruby, and two diamonds. "Hermione Granger, will you marry me?"  
  
Hermione covered her mouth with her hands, staring wide eyed at Harry; then she threw her arms around him.   
  
"Yes! I will!"  
  
Little tears of happiness were swimming in HermioneÕs eyes, and Harry looked like the happiest guy on earth as he slipped the ring onto HermioneÕs finger; he looked up at Hermione, a broad smile on his face. Everyone in to room was smiling, and their smiles broadened as Harry swept Hermione into a passionate kiss, as if they didnÕt have a care in the world.  
  
~*~  
  
"Come on, Harry, or the train will leave without us!"  
  
Harry and Hermione hurried through the barrier to platform 9 3/4, and towards the train that was already puffing smoke. James, Sirius, Remus, and Lily were already on the Hogwarts Express, and they were waiting in a compartment at the end of train. James had stuck his head out the window, and was shouting at the engaged couple to hurry up.  
  
"What were you two doing?" said James as Harry and Hermione came into the compartment and sat down. "Were you two having another snogging session or something?"  
  
Sirius let out one of his trademark bark-like laughs.  
  
"IÕll bet they were," he said, as the train started to move. "Harry has lipstick all over his face."  
  
"No I donÕt!" said Harry. He looked at his reflection in the train window, just to make sure, and didnÕt see any lipstick on his face.  
  
"Just kidding, Harry."  
  
Harry rolled his eyes, and looked at Hermione, who was sitting next to him, and smiled.  
  
"YouÕre not going to kiss Hermione, are you?" said Remus.   
  
Harry grinned evilly at Remus, and kissed Hermione, earning himself an eye-roll from Remus, and sniggers from James and Sirius.  
  
"Why are you two laughing?" Lily asked. "WhatÕs so funny about people kissing each other?"   
  
"I never said there was anything funny about it," said Sirius.  
  
"And anway, we werenÕt laughing at them," said James.  
  
"Yeah, sure," said Harry in a voice that clearly said otherwise.  
  
~*~  
  
Later that night, as Harry was lying in his bed in Hogwarts, he smiled to himself. The concept finally hit him. He was engaged, and to most beatiful girl in the world. Harry rolled over in his bed, and fell asleep.  
  
~*~  
  
You know what to do. 


	15. Revelations of a Phoenix

Thanks for your reviews, JVS491, dreamcatcher386, volleypickle16, O'Malley the Alley Cat, TheBookwrm, and athenakitty!  
  
athenakitty= You'll find out.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, as you probably guessed... :-)  
  
~*~  
  
A week after the Christmas holidays had already gone by, and it was finally the weekend. James, Lily, Sirius, Remus, and Hermione would have been outside sitting by the lake, perhaps doing homework or nothing at all, but since it was so cold outside, they couldnÕt. Instead, Lily and Hermione were off in the library doing homework, and James, Remus, Sirius, and Harry were hanging out in an abandoned class room in a remote corridor on the ground floor.  
  
James and Sirius were pretending to duel with a couple sticks for wands, Remus was reading a book, and Harry was staring at the window, out at the cold, grey sky and swirling snow. He was thinking about the great progress the sixth and seventh year Ravenclaws were making on finding a way to travel forward in time (Dumbledore would wipe their memories when Harry and Hermione were gone), and then his thoughts drifted over to Hermione, and the wedding. When should it be? The Easter holidays seemed like a good time, it would be spring, so it wouldnÕt be too cold outside. But where should the wedding be? GodricÕs Hollow? Maybe. Hogwarts? No, there would still be plenty of students around, and Harry and Hermione had planned to have a small wedding. Perhaps GodricÕs Hollow, then.  
  
HarryÕs thoughts then turned over to Hermione. Harry couldnÕt wait to become a father, and just the thought of it made him want to jump for joy. Hermione and Harry hadnÕt thought of any names for a child when they had one, but there was time for that in to future.   
  
The future. Harry didnÕt really want to go back to the future. There wasnÕt really anything for him there, except perhaps misery. He wouldnÕt be able to laugh with Ron, or Sirius, or his father or mother. Unfortunately, there was Voldemort to reckon with. Though he didnÕt want to, Harry knew he had to defeat Voldemort, and this was why he, Harry, had to go back to his own time. But how to defeat Voldemort? Harry had no ideas. He obviously couldnÕt use his own wand against Voldemort, because their wands were brothers. Harry could use another personÕs wand, but then whatever spell he cast wouldnÕt be as strong, because, as Mr. Olivander had said, 'You can never get such good results with another wizardÕs wand.' But if Harry couldnÕt use his wand, then how on earth was he to defeat Voldemort? He decided to run all this by the other three.  
  
"You canÕt use your wand against Voldemort because your wand and his are brothers?Ó said Sirius. "That must be bloody frustrating."  
  
"It is,Ó agreed Harry. "I just wish there was some way I could defeat him, either with someone elseÕs wand, or without any wand at all."  
  
Remus sighed and put down his book.  
  
"You have any ideas, Moony?Ó James asked.  
  
"One, but if it works, ItÕs going to take Harry months, years even, to work out how to do it. But then, HarryÕs more than just an ordinary wizard."  
  
"WhatÕs that supposed to mean?Ó said Harry.  
  
"You mean you donÕt know?Ó said Remus, looking at James, and then Harry. "Neither of you know?"  
  
"Know what?" Harry and James chorused.  
  
"Harry, James here is a pureblood, which IÕm sure you know. His family tree dates back centuries, to the time of Merlin himself. As you know, Merlin was the greatest sorcerer of his time, of all time, and no wizard has surpassed him in power- until now. IÕve been doing research, and IÕve come up with an extraordinary discovery."  
  
"YouÕre starting to sound like Dumbledore," said Sirius, and he was hushed by the other three.  
  
"What was your discovery?" Harry asked, though he thought he knew what was coming.  
  
"That you, Harry, and you, James, are related to Merlin. You two, and JamesÕs dad, are his last remaining descendants." Remus said.  
  
Harry and James sat there, drinking it all in.  
  
"Years, and years ago, there was a prophecy that was made. A prophecy that concerned Merlin, and his heir. You see, Merlin lived centuries ago, which means that his heir is either you, Harry, or James. I personally think it is Harry here, since Harry has shown what MerlinÕs true heir would be like."  
  
"Wait a minute,Ó said James. "How did you know what MerlinÕs Heir would be like?"  
  
"I remember reading it somewhere."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"So..." said Harry. "How is this supposed to work out, me being MerlinÕs heir?"  
  
"It means that you are the most powerful wizard- even more powerful than Dumbledore- to live since Merlin. You could probably master, say, an Animagus transformation in two months, at the most."  
  
HarryÕs jaw had dropped when Remus said that he, Harry, was more powerful that Dumbledore! He looked at James and Sirius, who looked very thoughtful.  
  
"ThatÕs an idea," said Sirius. "James and I could teach you to become an Animagus."  
  
"But IÕll be an illegal Animagus!"  
  
"Never stopped us," said James.  
  
Harry took a deep breath. "LetÕs get started, then."  
  
~*~  
  
Two nights later found Harry, James, Remus, and Sirius in yet another abandoned classroom. They were out, as was usual, past curfew, but they didnÕt care, because they now had HarryÕs invisibility cloak along with JamesÕs. Hermione had no knowledge of Harry attempting to become an Animagus, and Harry wasnÕt going to tell her unless he needed to.  
  
"Ok, Harry, IÕve got most of the information youÕll need here. The rest James and Sirius can help you with,Ó said Remus. He had found quite a bit of information on how to become an Animagus. Harry didnÕt know how he was going to read through all the information, but fortunately, Remus had high-lighted the most important points. ÒRead through all the stuff that IÕve high-lighted, and then James and Sirius can start coaching you."  
  
"Er...all right," said Harry. He took the information, and began to read through it. An hour later, he was done, have read everything very quickly, but he remembered everything he had read, which surprised him. "IÕm done reading through all this."  
  
James and Sirius, who had been having a mock duel, turned towards Harry.  
  
"About time,Ó said Sirius. Harry ignored him, and got up from the desk he had been sitting in and went over to James and Sirius, and the coaching began.  
  
~*~  
  
After two month of rigorous Animagus coaching from James and Sirius, and with occasional help from Remus, Harry had finally understood about himself being an Animagus. Harry, James, Sirius, and Remus were all in yet another abandoned class room, well past curfew, but none of them cared, as Harry was about to become an Animagus.  
  
"You sure youÕre ready, Harry?" said Remus. Harry nodded. "Ok, then."  
  
"Harry, just concentrate on turning into your Animagus form. The next time you try the transformation, it will be as easy for you as easy as it is for me and Sirius," said James.   
  
Harry nodded again, and closed his eyes, concentrating on transforming into his Animagus form. He concentrated and concentrated, until a 'Bloody hell!' broke the silence. Harry opened his eyes, and opened his mouth to say something, but all that came out was the song of the- Harry, not believing it, turned to look in the mirror, expecting to see himself staring back at him, except it wasnÕt him that he saw. It was a phoenix. His Animagus form was a phoenix.   
  
"Bloody hell!" said Sirius again. Harry closed his eyes, and transformed back into his normal state. He looked at the other three, who all still had their mouths open in amazement.  
  
"Harry! ThatÕs...thatÕs an amazing Animagus form youÕve got!Ó said James in awe.  
  
"Yeah," said Remus.  
  
Harry looked down at his feet.  
  
"DonÕt be embarrassed, Harry!Ó said James. He turned to the other two. "We have to give him a nick name, what with him now being an actual Marauder now. What should it be?"  
  
"Um...Ó Sirius thought for a while. "How about Fawkes?"  
  
"ThatÕs the name of DumbledoreÕs phoenix," said Harry.  
  
"Oh yeah..."  
  
"What about Gryffindor, Gryff for short?" suggested James.  
  
"ThatÕs a good idea," said Remus. "Harry?"  
  
"I like it."  
  
"Gryff it is, then,Ó said James. "Now come on, letÕs go back to the Tower. IÕm exhausted."  
  
~*~  
  
The next morning, Harry, James, Remus, and Sirius all came down the the Great Hall. It was about halfway through breakfast, but it didnÕt really matter to the Marauders. They sat down at the Gryffindor table next to Lily, and Hermione, seeing them, went over to the Gryffindor table and sat down next to Harry.   
  
"Hey, Gryff, pass the pumpkin juice, would you?"   
  
Harry handed the pumpkin juice to Sirius, and started on his own breakfast, which consisted of scrambled eggs and toast, and a side of bacon.  
  
"Gryff?Ó said Hermione to Harry. ÒWhy did Sirius call you Gryff?"  
  
"IÕll tell you later, Hermione my love," said Harry, taking a rather large bite of scrambled eggs.  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes, and she, too, started on her breakfast. A half hour later, when most of the students had already gone from the Hall, Dumbledore came up, unnoticed, by Hermione, Lily, and the new and improved Marauders.  
  
"So Harry," said James. "What should we do to prank old Snivellus again?"  
  
"How about we just do what we did last time, throw a firecracker in his cauldron?" said Harry.  
  
"No. I want to do something different. Like how about turning his robes pink, and making his hair into a garden of roses? We could add bees, too, to add to his discomfort."  
  
This was met by laughter from Harry, Remus, and Sirius.  
  
"DonÕt do that!" said Hermione. "You could get into a lot of trouble! And what if Dumbledore found out?"  
  
"He doesnÕt really care, as far as I can tell. I actually think he looks forward to see what our next prank is going to be,Ó said James.  
  
"Indeed, that is quite true, Mr. Potter,Ó said Dumbledore. Lily, Hermione, and the Marauders jumped. "However, I didnÕt come over here to find out when your next prank will be, though I must say I am looking forward to it. No, I came here to ask if Harry and Hermione here would be so kind as to meet me in my office."  
  
"But weÕll miss class, Professor!Ó said Hermione.  
  
"I have spoke with your teachers, and they have agreed to let you miss class."  
  
Hermione breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
"When should Hermione and I meet you in your office?" Harry asked.   
  
"Now would be the best time. I have a few things I would like to discuss with you two."  
  
Wondering what Dumbledore wanted to discuss, Harry and Hermione got up from the table. They followed Dumbledore out of the Great Hall and all the way up to his office silently, occasionally glancing at each other.   
  
"Please sit,Ó said Dumbledore, gesturing towards two comfortable looking arm chairs in front of his desk. Harry and Hermione sat down, and Dumbledore sat down behind his desk. ÒI have just heard an interesting bit of news concerning the two of you."  
  
"And what might that be, Professor?Ó said Harry. Then it came to him.  
  
"I have that you two are engaged, is that correct?"  
  
"Yes, Professor,Ó said Hermione.  
  
"And unfortunately you two are in different house, and canÕt spend as much time together as you would like,Ó Dumbledore continued.  
  
"Yes, thatÕs true."  
  
"And IÕm assuming you two want to be together."  
  
"ThatÕs also true,Ó said Harry. He noticed the look on DumbledoreÕs face. ÒWhat are you planning on doing?"  
  
"I am thinking of having Hermione, here, switched to Gryffindor."  
  
"What? Really?Ó said Hermione and Harry at the same time. Harry was joyous. Hermione, switching to Gryffindor! He couldnÕt stop the broad smile from creeping onto his face. "Seriously?"  
  
"Seriously, Harry. HermioneÕs belongings have already been moved to Gryffindor. And about you two going back to your own time...I will let you know when that time is, though it wonÕt be for another few months."  
  
"All right,Ó said Harry. ÒIs there anything else?"  
  
"No, there isnÕt. You may go to Gryffindor tower now, if you wish. Good bye."  
  
"Bye, Professor, and thank you!"  
  
Harry and Hermione practically ran all the way to Gryffindor tower, and Harry told Hermione on the way there that the Gryffindor seventh years had no classes of the rest of the day.  
  
When Harry burst into the common room minutes later, James, Sirius, Remus, and Lily all looked up, and were surprised to see Hermione following close behind.  
  
"Hermione! What are you doing in here?Ó said Lily, before Harry or Hermione had a chance to speak. ÒYouÕre in Ravenclaw!"  
  
"Not anymore, sheÕs not,Ó said Harry happily as he sat down in a comfortable old arm chair. He patted the arm of the chair, and Hermione sat on HarryÕs lap. ÒDumbledore just had her switched to Gryffindor. Apparently he heard that Hermione and I were engaged,Ó here, Harry looked lovingly at his fiance, ÒSo he decided to switch her to this house, so that she and I could be together."  
  
"That was really nice of Dumbledore,Ó said Lily. Hermione agreed with her.  
  
"So...Ó said James after a pause. ÒWhenÕs your wedding?"  
  
"WeÕre going to have it during the Easter holidays. ItÕs going to be a small wedding, at your house, James."  
  
"Do my parents know about this?"  
  
"Of course," Hermione replied. "As I was saying, itÕs going to be a small wedding. All of you are invited, and your families, if they wish to come. DumbledoreÕs been invited, and of course everyone in JamesÕs family is going to be there."  
  
"Wicked,Ó said James. ÒSo whoÕs going to be youÕre best man, Harry?"  
  
"I was thinking of you, being my future father and everything..."  
  
Everyone grinned, and Sirius shook his head with amusement.  
  
"What is it, Padfoot?" said James.  
  
"You, your son is getting married before you. I find that highly amusing."  
  
The rest of the group laughed, and James rolled his eyes with amusement, and glanced at Hermione and Harry.  
  
"Could you please confine that elsewhere? A broom cupboard, say?"  
  
Harry and Hermione, who had been in the middle of a passionate kiss, broke apart.  
  
"Nah, IÕd rather not. And besides, whatÕs wrong with showing affection for my fiance?"  
  
James smirked, but said nothing. Sirius, however, took out a WizardÕs chess set, and set it on the table.  
  
"WizardÕs chess, anyone?"  
  
James got of the couch where he had been sitting, and the game began.  
  
~*~  
  
You know what to do :-) 


	16. The Wedding

Thanks for your reviews, JD22, volleypickle16, JVS491, dreamcatcher386, O'Malley the Alley Cat and athenakitty!  
  
O'Malley the Alley Cat= Thanks :-)  
  
JVS491= Here's a virtual hug :-) :-)  
  
Disclaimer: Guess what's supposed to go here. I dare you.  
  
Harry woke up to a ray of sunshine hitting his face. He rejoiced at the thought that he, Hermione, James, and Sirius would be going back to Godric's Hollow that day for the Easter holidays. They would be at Godric's Hollow for a week, and then, of course, they would all return to Hogwarts. During the Easter holidays, he, Harry, would be getting married! Harry grinned to himself, and got out of bed and started to get dressed. When he was done, he went over to wake up James.  
  
"James, wake up!"  
  
But James was already awake, as he demonstrated by scaring Harry out of his wits by setting off a firecracker. The loud bang made by the firecracker woke up the rest of the seventh year boys.  
  
"Sorry to have scared you, Harry," said James, not sounding at all apologetic. On the contrary, he was actually smiling.  
  
"Yeah, sure," said Harry. He went over to his bed, and did some last-minute packing.  
  
"Why did you do that, James?" said Peter blearily.  
  
"That's none of your business, you rat," Sirius spat out. Peter shut up, and went back to sleep. He would be staying at Hogwarts during the holidays.  
  
When everyone in the dorm, with the exception of Peter, were done getting ready, they headed down to the common room, dragging their trunks along with them. In the common room, they met up with Hermione and Lily, and the six of them continued on their way towards the thestral-drawn carriages which would take them to the Hogwarts express.   
  
When the carriages arrived at the Hogsmeade station, Harry, Hermione, Lily, Sirius, Remus, and James all got into a compartment, along with their trunks, Hermione's cat, and Harry's owl.   
  
"Harry, are you all right?" Lily looked at Harry, concerned.  
  
Harry nodded his head, and turned to look out the window. He was feeling depressed. He had been thinking about Sirius falling through the veil again, and of Ron dying in his arms. Harry let a single tear fall down his face. He wished that Ron could be at his wedding, but that was impossible because of, well... At least Sirius would be going to the wedding, even if he was currently seventeen years old. Harry wiped his face on his sleeve, and turned to look at Hermione. She was reading a book, but when Harry looked at her, she caught his eye and smiled.  
  
"I'm bored," Sirius complained. The train had left the station thirty minutes ago.   
  
"Why don't you read, or something?" Hermione suggested over the top of her book.  
  
"Me, read?" asked Sirius, as if this wasn't at all a good idea. "I'll pass. I was just wondering if anyone wanted to play a game of exploding snap."  
  
All the males in the compartment readily agreed to this, and so Sirius got out the cards, and started the game.  
  
Harry, Hermione, James, Sirius, and Mr. and Mrs. Potter entered the Potter house. It was the same as Harry remembered it from his previous visit during the Christmas holidays. Since it was late, and Harry, Hermione, James and Sirius had already eaten dinner on the train, they headed straight upstairs after saying good-night to James's parents.  
  
"You nervous, Harry?" said James, as the 7th years reached the second floor landing.  
  
"Nervous about what?" Harry asked.  
  
"You're getting married in two days!" said Sirius.   
  
"Yeah, I suppose I am a little nervous," said Harry.  
  
"Not planning on running out on me, are you?" Hermione grinned.  
  
"Now, Hermione," said Harry. "Why would I want to run out on a beautiful, intelligent lady such as yourself?  
  
Hermione giggled as Harry gave her a swift kiss on the lips. James and Sirius rolled their eyes.  
  
"Does kissing make you that tired?" said James as Hermione tried, and failed, to stifle a yawn.   
  
"I'm yawning because I'm tired," said Hermione. "I'm going to bed. Good night." She gave Harry a kiss, and then headed off to her room, leaving Harry, James, and Sirius still standing on the second floor landing.  
  
"You don't mind if we don't kiss you good night, do you?" said Sirius.  
  
"Shut up," said Harry.  
  
"I was only joking.  
  
"I know," said Harry, grinning.  
  
"Come one, you two, stop arguing," James yawned. "I'm really tired."  
  
"We weren't arguing," said Sirius.  
  
"Whatever," said James. "Good night."  
  
Harry said good night to James and Sirius, and went to his room. He flopped down on the bed with out even bothering to undress, and fell asleep almost instantly.  
  
It was two days later; the day that Harry and Hermione would be getting married. Everything was already set up in the back yard of the Potter house, the chairs were set up, and in front of the chairs was a small, white platform with a willow tree on either side. The guests had already arrived. There was Dumbledore; Lily's parents; Remus's parents; a younger Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, who were friends of Mr. and Mrs. Potter, with a young Bill and Charlie.Lily, James, Sirius, and Remus were there, of course, but they were all inside; Lily was helping to calm Hermione's nerves, as well as helping with the wedding dress, and James, Remus, and Sirius were with Harry trying to calm his nerves.  
  
"I'm just so nervous! I mean-" said Harry, finishing getting into his tux.  
  
"Harry, you're going to be fine," said James.   
  
"I know, but it's just that-"  
  
"You're not having second thoughts, are you?" said Sirius.  
  
"No!"  
  
"Good," said Remus. "James, Sirius, let's all go outside. The ceremony should be starting in a few minutes."  
  
Harry waved good-bye, and did the finishing touches on his hair and tux.  
  
Meanwhile, Lily had just finished helping Hermione, and as she came out of the room, she met up with James, Remus, and Sirius.   
  
"She nervous?" said James.  
  
"A little," said Lily. " Nervous and Happy. But I can't really blame her."  
  
"That's understandable," said Remus. "Harry's nervous, too, but James, Sirius, and I helped to calm him down. He's still in the room putting on the finishing touches."  
  
"Yeah, so's Hermione," said Lily.   
  
"Speaking of Hermione," said James. "Who's walking her down the aisle?"  
  
"You're father."  
  
"Oh," said James. He, Sirius, Remus, and Lily walked outside, and just as they were doing so, Mr. Potter walked inside.   
  
"Where's Harry? He's supposed to be at the altar, and so are you James, you're Harry's best man!"  
  
"Harry's almost done getting ready-"  
  
"I'm right here," said Harry, practically running down the stairs. "All right, let's go outside."  
  
Harry, James, Lily, Remus, and Sirius hurried outside. Lily, Remus, and Sirius found seats in the front row, and Harry and James went up to the altar. Dumbledore was to act as reverend. His eyes twinkled as he saw Harry. Harry took a deep, steadying breath. And then the music started. It was very pretty, the music. The glass doors leading out into the back yard opened, and out stepped Mr. Potter, leading Hermione Granger.   
  
Harry's jaw dropped when he saw her. She was wearing a white, flowing, spaghetti strap gown. Her hair was tied up atthe back of her head in an elegant knot, and there was a veil. A small section of it hung in front of her face, and the rest trailed behind her. Harry could see tears of happiness in her eyes as Mr. Potter led her to the platform, and infront of Harry. The music ceased, and Dumbledore began to speak. Harry and Hermione said, "I do".  
  
"Give each other the rings," said Dumbledore, a few minutes later.  
  
Harry slipped the engagement ring he had given Hermione, with the small ruby and diamond, and now with two, thin gold bands, onto her ring finger. Hermione slipped a gold ring with a single small ruby onto Harry's finger.  
  
"Harry, Hermione, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."  
  
Harry lifted the veil from Hermione's face, and kissed her.   
  
There wasn't a dry eye as the married couple broke apart, and even Dumbledore wiped his eyes.  
  
During the reception, which lasted until evening, Harry and Hermione had a chance to have a good conversation with everyone there, which is what they did. Harry was very pleased to talk with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, though of course it was the younger versions. He considered telling them about Ron, then decided not to, because he knew that he couldn't change what happened in the future, no matter how hard he tried. He also enjoyed a little chat with the much younger versions of Bill and Charlie Weasley about Quidditch.   
  
By the end of the evening, when everyone had left, Harry, Hermione, James, Sirius, and Mr. and Mrs. Potter were sitting in the living room of the Potter house on very comfortable couches. They were talking about the days events, it wasn't until James yawned largely that Mrs. Potter suggested that everyone go to bed.   
  
"But we haven't even had dinner!" James complained loudly.  
  
"I'll bring something up to your rooms."  
  
"All right."  
  
"Now get to bed," said Mrs. Potter. "And Harry, Hermione, you'll be sleeping in the room that's all the way down the hall upstairs, ok? I've already put some food there for you,- no, not you James, or you, Sirius-"  
  
"Why do Harry and Hermione get special treatment? I'm your son!"  
  
"Because they're married," said Mr. Potter. "Now, scoot, all of you."   
  
Harry grinned at James, dodging a pillow as he and Hermione headed up the stairs.  
  
"Shall I carry you to our room, my dear?" said Harry, and without waiting for an answer, he picked Hermione up, despite her feeble protest, and carried her the room that Mrs. Potter mentioned.  
  
The room had a queen sized bed with a blue and gold comforter, sheets, and pillowcases. At the end of the bed there stood Harry's and Hermione's trunks; there was a large window on the wall behind the bed. The room was completely dark, except for five candles sitting on a table which cast a dim glow. On the table, which was small, was some food. Harry and Hermione weren't very hungry, but they took a few bites of the food anyway. There was also some wine, which tasted quite good, and they had a couple glasses of it. When they were done, Harry carried Hermione got dressed into their pyjamas, and climbed into bed.  
  
"Long day," said Harry.  
  
"Yeah," said Hermione. "When you proposed to me...did you really mean the part of wanting kids?"  
  
"Of course! I like kids, and I want to have one or two of my own. Why, do you want kids?" Harry propped himself up on his elbow.  
  
"Of course I do," said Hermione.   
  
Harry bent down and kissed her, and held it for a few seconds, then drew away. Hermione smiled, so Harry kissed her again. Harry felt Hermione's arms go around the back of his neck as she pulled him closer, and closer...an soon, it was as though they were back in room 11 of the Leaky Cauldron.   
  
Please review 


	17. Lakeshore Happiness

Thanks for your reviews, JVS491, TheGreatFox, O'Malley the Alley Cat, volleypickle16, JD22, Neo Anderson, gaul1, athenakitty, and dreamcatcher386!  
  
athenakitty= Harry's an animagus (a phoenix), remember.  
  
O'Malley the Alley Cat= :-)  
  
TheGreatFox= Thanks so much! I always love reading long reviews (your review was by far the longest I've recieved :-) ). I will write all the way to the end of this story, and I'll write other Harry Potter stories afterwards. And as for your question... the answer to the first part of your question: No. The answer to the second part of your question: Yes.   
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
  
It was the middle of April, and Harry, Remus, and Sirius were hanging out by the lake, doing their homework, or at least, that's what Remus was doing. Harry had already finished his homework, and so he was playing a casual game of wizard's chess with Sirius. Hermione was in the library, where she was finishing up her homework with some new friends from Gryffindor (she was now staying in that house, after all). Harry didn't know where James and Lily were; probably up to some sort of mischief, though Harry didn't really want to think of what kind of mischief. His suspicions were soon confirmed, however.  
  
"Hello, all," said James cheerily, as he walked up to the group arm in arm with Lily, who looked just as happy as James.  
  
"What are you looking so happy about?" questioned Sirius, as he lost a pawn to Harry's queen.  
  
"Well..." said Lily, looking lovingly at James. "James and I just got engaged.  
  
"What? Really?" said Harry, Sirius, and Remus.  
  
"Yeah, and then, we...well...."  
  
"You had...?" Remus trailed off.  
  
James nodded his head. Remus looked disapproving, but said nothing. Lily held out her hand, and Harry saw a ring with a silver band and a single diamond.  
  
"Nice ring," said Sirius.  
  
"Speaking of rings..." said Lily. "Harry, where's Hermione?"  
  
"In the library, I think she's doing homework. Why?"  
  
Lily shrugged. "Just curious."  
  
Sirius patted the ground beside him.  
  
"Sit down," he said. "You can watch me teach Harry here how to lose at chess." Harry had been beating Sirius at every chess game, for Ron had trained him well in the art of chess.  
  
James and Lily sat down, and watched the game continue, which ended in yet another game loss for Sirius.  
  
A few days later, and Harry, James, Lily, Sirius, and Remus were hanging out by the lake. They weren't doing any homework this time, for none of their teachers had given them any. However, even if they had been given any homework, they wouldn't have been working on it, the reason being that they were discussing how cute James and Lily looked together, and how cute Harry and Hermione looked together.   
  
"Where is Hermione, anyway?" said Remus. "She was with us during lunch."  
  
"She said that she had to talk to Madame Pomfrey about something- she didn't say what," answered Harry. "She said she'd meet us out here afterwards, though.  
  
As though in answer to Harry, Hermione came running up seconds later, looking extremely joyful and happy about something.  
  
"Are you all right?" said Harry.  
  
"No- yes, I'm fine," said Hermione quickly, smiling broadly.  
  
"Why don't you sit down, and tell me what's up?" said Harry.   
  
"I can't, I'm too happy!"  
  
"Why?" asked Harry. James, Lily, Sirius, and Remus leaned forward.  
  
"Harry, I'm...I'm pregnant."  
  
Stunned silence greeted these words.  
  
"You're... you're..."  
  
"I'm pregnant, Harry. I'm going to have a baby."  
  
"I'm going to be a father!"  
  
Harry stood up and swept Hermione into a passionate kiss.  
  
"When did you find out?" said Harry.   
  
The others sat there, listening to every word. When Hermione had announced the great news, they had all cheered.  
  
"Just a few minutes ago. I'm a month pregnant, and that means the baby is due in November!" Hermione squealed with glee, and Harry again swept her into another passionate kiss.  
  
"I can't believe it! I'm going to be a father!"  
  
"And I'm going to be a grandfather!" said James. Everyone looked at him. James grew wide-eyed, and instantly covered his mouth. Lily didn't know that Harry was her son from the future.  
  
"What did you say?" Lily asked.   
  
"Er- nothing! I didn't say anything!" James panicked.  
  
"Yes, you said that you were going to be a grandfather. Now how exactly is that possible?"  
  
"Just tell, her, James," said Harry, and so James told her. Surprisingly, Lily wasn't all that shocked.  
  
"Well, I thought you must be related to James somehow, what with you looking so much like him, except for the eyes of course. I just didn't think that you were his and my son from the future."  
  
"I thought you'd be more shocked by the news. Clearly I was wrong," said Harry, grinning.   
  
"That doesn't matter, though, Harry, because just think! You're going to be a father!"  
  
Harry was still in a happy daze from hearing the news.  
  
"Yeah, I am."  
  
Two months had flown by, and the month of June was upon everyone, as well as the NEWTs examinations for all the seventh-year students. Harry felt sure that he would do well, because Hermione had been making him study more than he normally would have done ("You want to be an Auror, don't you?" she had said.). So Harry studied as much as he could, along with Hermione, James and Lily, Sirius, and Remus.   
  
"Everyone, you may begin," rang out Professor McGonagall's voice. It was finally the very last examination; afterwards, all the seventh-years would be free from school work. There was a flurry of quils scratching on the parchment.  
  
"Whew!" said Sirius joyfully after the exam. "I'm glad that's over! No more exams! No more homework!" He jumped into the air and let out a joyful shout.  
  
James and Harry laughed.  
  
There was only one week left until the end of the school year. Everyone had gotten their NEWTs scores, and Harry was pleased to see that he had recieved top scores in all his examinations.   
  
It was early in the afternoon, and Harry and Hermione, Lily and James, and Remus, and Sirius were, as was usual, hanging out under the tree by the lake. They were watching students swimming in the lake, playing quidditch in the distant quidditch field, and just laying down on the grass, talking with friends. Currently, James had the group in a discussion about the jobs each wanted after leaving Hogwarts.  
  
"So, Harry," said James, "What job are hoping to get?"  
  
"Well, I really want to be an Auror," said Harry.  
  
"You'll have to study a lot for that, you know," said Hermione.  
  
"I know, McGonagall told me a couple years ago."  
  
"And it'll be dangerous."  
  
"I know, Hermione, I know," said Harry. "You don't have to be so worried," he added soothingly. "I'll be a fine Auror."  
  
"I know you will, I just don't want you to get killed, leaving your wife behind to raise a fatherless child.  
  
"You won't, Hermione. Now stop worrying." Harry smiled.  
  
Hermione looked as though she was going to say somethine else in reply, but before she could, Lily brought up the subject of names for the baby.  
  
"If it's a girl, we're going to name it either Melian, Natalie, or Jamie," said Harry.  
  
"And if it's a boy, we're going to name it either Ron, Elessar, or James," Hermione said.  
  
"If the baby's a girl, you should name is Jamie," said Remus.  
  
"I agree. It sounds cute when put with your last name."  
  
"Jamie it is then," said Harry. "If it's a girl," he added.  
  
"Ok, but what if it's a boy?"  
  
"I think James is a wonderful name," said James. "The name of a true Marauder."  
  
Lily rolled her eyes. "I actually like the name Ron."  
  
"Ron was the name of a friend of mine and Harry's. A very good friend," said Hermione.   
  
"Was?" said Lily.   
  
"He died a couple years ago," said Harry.  
  
"How?"   
  
Harry told her, and when he was through, Lily had her hands clapped to her mouth.  
  
"I'm so sorry! Did you know this?" she asked James, Sirius, and Remus. They nodded. "Harry, I'm so sorry!"  
  
"It's all right," he said. "Hermione and I still feel sad about it, but it's not like we'll never see him again."  
  
"So we're settled on the names for the baby, right?" said Hermione, clearly anxious to change the subject.  
  
"Yeah, I suppose," said Harry. "Ron if it's a boy, and Jamie if it's a girl." 


	18. Forwards

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"So we're settled on the names for the baby, right?" said Hermione, clearly anxious to change the subject.  
  
"Yeah, I suppose," said Harry. "Ron if it's a boy, and Jamie if it's a girl."  
  
Hermione sighed, and lay down on the ground, with her eyes closed. Harry ruffled her hair a little, and she smiled.  
  
"Anyone up for a game of wizard's chess?" suggested Sirius. "James? Remus?" They both shook their heads.   
  
"Harry, you play chess with him," said James lazily.  
  
"No!" said Sirius.  
  
"Why not?" said Harry.  
  
"You always win."  
  
"I'll try not to this time, ok?" Harry grinned. "Now how about that game?"  
  
Sirius smiled, and got out the chess board; he had just finished setting all the pieces up, when Professor McGonagall came up to them.  
  
"Hello, Professor!" said Sirius cheerily. "Care to watch a game of chess?"  
  
"As exciting as that sounds, Mr. Black, I am afraid that I can't," Professor McGonagall replied.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because the Headmaster would like to see all of you in his office at once; and don't dawdle. I don't know what he wants with all of you, but he said that it was very important. The password to the Headmaster's office is "Chocolate Frog"."  
  
Professor McGonagall left, and, though reluctantly, Lily, James, Remus, Sirius, and Harry and Hermione got up; Sirius put the chess set away; and all of them headed towards the castle. They all knew why Dumbledore wanted to see all of them, even no one had told them what.  
  
"Chocolate Frog," said Harry halfheartedly. He didn't really want to leave this time, and never be able to see and talk with his parents again; but he knew he had to, or else he wouldn't be able to defeat Voldemort.  
  
The stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance to Dumbledore's office stepped aside, and Lily, James, Remus, Sirius, and Harry and Hermione stepped onto the moving stair case, which transported them to the door that led to Dumbledore's office. Harry opened the door, and stepped inside, Hermione, Remus, Lily, James, and Sirius along with him.  
  
Besides the students who had just entered the room, and besides Dumbledore, there were three other people in the room: Mr. and Mrs. Potter, and...  
  
"You!" said James in disgust.  
  
"What are you doing here, you traitor, you rat?" said Sirius.  
  
Peter looked defiantly back at them, but said nothing.  
  
"As soon as you boys are done arguing, I will tell you all why I have summoned you here," said Dumbledore. The room fell silent. "I have already told Peter, and Mr. and Mrs. Potter about Harry's and Hermione's situation- and by this I mean that I have told them where Hermione and Harry have really come from." Dumbledore turned to Harry and Hermione. "It is time for you two to go back to your own time."  
  
Harry hung his head.   
  
"I will allow you and Hermione to say your good-byes, and then you two must go."  
  
Harry and Hermione said their good-byes, though not without lack of tears, for there were many.  
  
"I'm really glad to have gotten to know all of you, and I'm really going to miss you." He wiped a tear from his face.  
  
"We liked getting to know you, to," said Lily, James, and Sirius as they gave Harry and Hermione hugs.  
  
"Yeah, Harry," said Remus. He hugged Harry and Hermione. "Say hi to my future self, for me, will you?"  
  
"I will."  
  
"We're glad we had a chance to meet you both. We're all really going to miss you." Mr. and Mrs. Potter each gave Harry and Hermione a hug.  
  
"Come, Harry, Hermione. It is time." Harry and Hermione went over to Dumbledore. "When these two go," he added to the rest of the room, "I will be wiping your memories."  
  
They all nodded.   
  
"Good bye, Harry and Hermione," said Dumbledore.  
  
Suddenly, Harry and Hermione suddenly felt themselves being pulled forwards in a whirlwind of color and sound. The force that was pulling them was very strong. Then, as suddenly as it had started, it stopped, and Harry and Hermione found themselves back in their own time, 1998, and in Dumbledore's office.  
  
Dumbledore was sitting in his desk, as Harry saw, and he was looking at them.   
  
"Er...hello, Professor," said Harry.  
  
"Hello, Harry, Hermione. I trust you had a good time, with you parents, Harry?"  
  
"How did you-?"  
  
"I distinctly remember, in the year 1977, you and Hermione coming back in time."  
  
"You remember?" said Hermione.  
  
"Of course, and when it was time for you two to come back to your own time, I remember that you two were married, and that Hermione was expecting a child."  
  
"So you remember mistaking me for my dad?"   
  
"Yes, that I remember. But on a more serious note, I must tell you both what happened when you two were gone." Dumbledore suddenly looked very grave. "The Weasley house was destroyed a couple months ago by Voldemort."  
  
"WHAT?! Why?! They didn't get...killed...did they?" asked Harry and Hermione.  
  
"Voldemort was searching for the Weasleys, and when he came to the Burrow, they weren't there. They were at 12 Grimmauld Place. When Voldemort didn't find them, he destroyed the house."  
  
"But...why did he destroy the house?" said Hermione.  
  
"Why was he even looking for them?" Harry added.  
  
"He's been searching for anybody with a connection to you, and killing them. But at least he didn't succeed in killing the Weasleys. However..." Dumbledore trailed off.  
  
"No one else I care about has died, have they?" asked Harry worriedly.  
  
"No, Harry," Dumbledore replied. "However, before you two leave, I must inform you that the both of you are in very great danger. Don't go wandering around. Good night."  
  
"What do you think Dumbledore meant?" said Hermione, as she and Harry walked up the marble staircase.  
  
"You're the smart one," said Harry, earning himself a playful shove. " We're in danger because of Voldemort. I bet he's probably going to hurt those I love to get to me. It's already happened twice."  
  
"Harry, don't say that," Hermione said.  
  
"But it's true," said Harry. "You know it is."  
  
"I know...," said Hermione.   
  
Hermione and Harry were silent the rest of the way to the Gryffindor common room. They had just reached the portrait of the Fat Lady when Harry suddenly stopped.  
  
"What is it?" questioned Hermione.  
  
"I've just thought of something," said Harry. "What wil everyone say when they find out that we're married, and that you're three months pregnant? And that that all happened when we were in my parents' time?"  
  
"We'll deal with that when it comes to it," said Hermione. "And knowing Dumbledore, he'll announce to the entire school what happened."  
  
Harry said the password to get into the tower, and he and Hermione both climbed into the Gryffindor common room. No one noticed them at first; they were too busy doing homework, playing chess, or just talking with friends. It was Ginny who noticed them, and she shouted across the common room.  
  
"Harry and Hermione are back!" she yelled. The whole common room fell silent, and their heades turned towards Harry and Hermione. They smiled shyly. Then everyone cheered.  
  
"We were so worried about you!" said Ginny, coming through the crowd to get to them. She hugged each of them, and led them back to where she had been sitting with Neville.  
  
"What happened? Where were you two?" said Neville at once.  
  
"Dumbledore will explain everything tomorrow morning," said Harry.  
  
"Harry, I'm going to bed," said Hermione. "I'm exhausted." She gave Harry a quick kiss, and headed off to her dorm.   
  
Harry sat there in silence for a while, and then he too, said good night and when up to bed; the moment his head touched the pillow on his bed, he was asleep.   
  
Please review 


	19. Catching Up to Disappearances

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Dumbledore did indeed announce what had happened to Harry and Hermione; about how they had gone back in time by accident (but not about how Harry and Hermione were married and expecting a child), everyone cheered, except the Slytherins, of course.   
  
The day went by fairly quickly. Quite a few people congratulated Harry and Hermione about being back safe, and by the end of the day, only a very few amount of people knew that Harry and Hermione were married, and that Hermione was pregnant.  
  
That evening, Harry, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville were sitting on the far side of the lake under a tree, hidden from view by a clump of bushes. There was hardly anyone out on the grounds, though, because it was already 8:00. Fifth years and above had curfew at 9:00. There were a couple students still flying around the Quidditch pitch.  
  
At the moment, Harry, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville were in a discussion about how the Burrow had been destroyed.  
  
"Ginny, I'm still really sorry to hear that your home was destroyed," said Hermione.  
  
"It's all right," said Ginny with a shrug. "At least no one was injured...except for that ghoul in the attic..."  
  
Harry managed a weak smile.  
  
"When did this happen, anyway?" he asked.  
  
"During the Christmas holidays, when we were all at 12 Grimmauld Place," said Ginny. "It was a couple days after Christmas, and I had just finish eating breakfast when Dad came in and said that You-Know-Who had destroyed our house. Lupin, Dumbledore, Mum, George, Fred, and Bill and Charlie were there when Dad announced what had happened.  
  
"What did they do?"  
  
"Well, Mum started crying, and Dad went over and comforted her."  
  
"And what did the others do?" asked Harry.   
  
"Well," continued Ginny. "Dumbledore went over to the stove and made some tea, and Lupin went to Mum and tried to comfort her. Fred, George, Bill, and Charlie were very sad over what happened. George said that at least we had each other, and that was all that mattered; this cheered Mum up a little, but she still went on crying."  
  
"But why?" asked Neville.  
  
"Because You-Know-Who destroyed our house, Mum and everyone else could never again visit my brother's grave."  
  
There was a long silence after this, as everyone's minds went back to that fateful night a year and a half ago. Harry tried hard not to think that he wouldn't be able to visit his best friend's grave. He gave his head a little shake to clear his mind of these thoughts.  
  
"So, Harry, Hermione, when exactly did you two get married?" Harry could tell that Neville was trying to change the subject.  
  
"During the Easter holidays, at Godric's Hollow," said Harry. "We, Hermione and I, that is, met your mum and dad, Ginny. And a much younger version of your brothers, Bill and Charlie.  
  
"Really?!" Ginny asked, incredulously.  
  
"Yeah, apparently you parents were friends of my grandparents."  
  
"Interesting..."  
  
"What are you planning on naming the baby?" asked Neville.  
  
"Well, Harry and I were thinking of naming it Jamie if it's a girl, and Ron if it's a boy," said Hermione.  
  
"What about middle names?" asked Ginny.  
  
"We haven't really thought about those," said Hermione.  
  
"I like the name Aphrodite," said Ginny.  
  
Hermione looked at Harry, who nodded.  
  
"Aphrodite, it is then," said Hermione. She chewed her lower lip. "Harry? Is it all right if we come up with a different first name for the baby if it's a girl?"  
  
"What were you thinking of?" Harry asked.  
  
"Helen," said Hermione. "Helen Aphrodite Potter."  
  
Harry smiled. "How about Jamie Helen Potter?"  
  
"Sounds good to me," said Hermione. "But what if the baby is a boy?"  
  
"Hector?" suggested Harry. "I've been reading the Iliad," he said. "That's where the names Helen and Aphrodite are mentioned, also."  
  
"Ronald Hector Potter..."  
  
"I like it," said Ginny. "It sounds-"  
  
"As though it was a name given by a Mudblood," said an unpleasant voice. Malfoy stepped into view. "Why are you even talking about baby names, anyway?"  
  
"Why are you even here, Malfoy?" said Harry, looking at Malfoy with distaste.   
  
"To complete some unfinished business, Potter."  
  
"And what would that be?" Hermione stood up. Harry got up too, and stood next to Hermione.  
  
"Do you remember what happened in Diagon Alley, before you and Potter went back in time?"  
  
"Yes," said Hermione.  
  
"And do you remember me saying that I would get you back for that?"  
  
"I remember," said Hermione. She crossed her arms, and said with impatience, "Are you finished yet?"  
  
"Shut up, Granger!"  
  
Harry pulled out his wand. "It's Potter now, Malfoy."  
  
Malfoy raised an eyebrow.  
  
"And the next time you talk to my wife like that, I will do much worse to you than what I'm going to do now." And without waiting for an answer, Harry raised his wand and Stunned Malfoy.  
  
"Thanks for taking care of that for me, Harry."  
  
"No problem," Harry replied. "Uh...what are we going to do about him?" He kicked Malfoy with his shoe.  
  
Hermione pulled out her wand, pointed it at Malfoy, and muttered something. He disappeared instantly.  
  
"Where did you send him?" asked Ginny, Harry, and Neville.  
  
"To Madame Pomfrey."  
  
Suddenly, Hermione yawned widely.  
  
"I'm really tired," she said. "I think I'll go to bed now."  
  
"All right," said Harry. "Ginny, Neville, and I will be along in a few minutes. How about a good night kiss before you go?  
  
Hermione grinned, and was swept into a a loving kiss by Harry.  
  
"Good night, Harry," said Hermione when they broke apart.  
  
"Good night," said Harry.   
  
Ginny and Neville bade Hermione good night, and then she left.  
  
It was quiet for a while after that, with the only sound being that of the wind rustling through the trees.   
  
"You made an excellent choice in marrying Hermione," said Neville, grinning at Harry.   
  
"I agree," said Ginny.   
  
Harry smiled.  
  
Everything was silent for a while, and Harry sat back down beside Ginny and Neville. Harry lay down on the ground, and closed his eyes as he listened to the to the water of the lake rippling onto the shore. He breathed a deep sigh of contentment.   
  
Suddenly, the peaceful silence was shattered by a bloodcurdling scream.  
  
Harry's eyes snapped open, and he stood up, and looked to Neville and Ginny, panic showing in his face and eyes. "Hermione!"  
  
Harry ran off to the direction of the where the scream had come from, convinced that whatever he found would not be something good; Ginny and Neville ran along behind him.   
  
What Harry found confirmed his worries. There was a patch of ground that looked as though it had been trodden on many times; the grass was reduced to muddy nothingness. Harry could see at least two- no, three- pairs of foot prints. Neville pointed out something lying on the ground, and Harry went over and picked it up. It was a wand. Hermione's wand.  
  
"Voldemort. He's taken her."  
  
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	20. Fighting to the End

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Disclaimer: Have you guess what's supposed to go here? I still have a few monkeys on hand, in case you haven't.  
  
.  
  
Harry ran off to the direction of the where the scream had come from, convinced that whatever he found would not be something good; Ginny and Neville ran along behind him.   
  
What Harry found confirmed his worries. There was a patch of ground that looked as though it had been trodden on many times; the grass was reduced to muddy nothingness. Harry could see at least two- no, three- pairs of foot prints. Neville pointed out something lying on the ground, and Harry went over and picked it up. It was a wand. Hermione's wand.  
  
"Voldemort. He's taken her."  
  
Harry was sure of it. Dumbledore had, after all, warned him and Hermione not to go wandering around alone. Why didn't he listen?! He should have gone up to the castle with Hermione, to protect her, to make sure that something like this wouldn't happen!   
  
"Harry?" said Neville shakily.  
  
"We have to go to Dumbledore!" Harry pocketed Hermione's wand, and without waiting for another word, he dashed towards the castle. Ginny and Neville followed.  
  
When Harry reached the door to Dumbledore's office, he didn't wait to knock, but barged right on in. Dumbledore, who had been writing something down, looked up.  
  
"Harry, Ginny, Neville, it was wonderful of you to think of coming here to visit me, but I really must get on with this-" he caught sight of Harry's panic-stricken face. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Hermione! Voldemort's taken her! I think he's taken her to the Department of Mysteries!"  
  
Dumbledore immediately stood up. "To the Department of Mysteries?"  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"I'll go and alert the Order. You three stay here."  
  
"Why can't I come?" said Harry heatedly.  
  
Dumbledore sighed. "I don't want to risk losing you, too."  
  
"SHE'S MY WIFE!" Harry erupted. "WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO? JUST SIT HERE AND DO NOTHING?"  
  
"Harry, I order you to stay here," said Dumbledore sternly. Harry took several calming breaths. "Good," Dumbledore continued. "I must go now. Stay here, all of you." Dumbledore threw some Floo Powder into the fireplace, shout out "12 Grimmauld Place!" and disappeared in a rush of green flames.   
  
As soon as he had gone, Harry, too, went over to where the Floo Powder was kept.   
  
"Harry, what are you doing?" Neville asked.   
  
"Harry, don't go to the Department of Mysteries! Dumbledore said for us to say here!"  
  
Harry ignored Ginny, and threw the Powder into the fireplace. He was about step in himself, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around, and found himself face-to-face with Ginny.  
  
"Harry, don't go!"  
  
"Why not?" Harry growled.   
  
"Dumbledore said not to!"  
  
"I DON'T CARE WHAT DUMBLEDORE SAID!" Harry yelled again. "HERMIONE'S MY WIFE! DO YOU THINK I'M GOING TO STAY HERE WHILE SHE'S IN DANGER?!"   
  
"But...Harry..." Ginny hesitated.  
  
"What? WHAT?"  
  
"What if you die?"  
  
Harry was about to shout at her again, but instead he took a few deep, calming breaths and said in a voice that was calm, cold, and full of determination, as if of one who was resigned to his fate, "I'd rather die fighting for what's right, than die alone, having done nothing." He stepped into the fireplace, and was instantly rushing towards the Ministry of Magic.  
  
.  
  
When Harry fell out of the fireplace in the Ministry, he found the Atrium empty. He thought this was a bit strange at first, but then remembered that Voldemort, and possibly a few of his Death Eaters, were here. He walked quietly down the hallway, glancing at the Fountain of Magical Brethren, now fully restored to it's former glory that was halfway down the hall. He reached the golden gates, went through these, and stepped into one of the lifts, and pushed the button that had the number nine on it.   
  
The noise of the lift descending rang all over the Ministry, Harry was sure of this. And if that was true, Harry reasoned to himself, that would mean that he had just announced his arrival, and Voldemort's Death Eaters would surely be waiting for him. And waiting for him, they were, but not at the lifts on the ninth floor, no, they were waiting at the door that led into the Department of Mysteries. Then Harry realized that they were guarding it, and keeping a watch out for arrivals.   
  
Harry practically tip-toed down the hall, taking great care not to make a sound, amazed that the two Death Eaters hadn't noticed him. When Harry reached them, he was even more amazed to find that they were asleep.  
  
"I should really mention this to Voldemort when I see him," said Harry to himself. He saw the Death Eaters stir, and Stunned them before they even had the chance to do anything.  
  
Harry opened the door, stepped over the Stunned Death Eaters, and found himself in the same circular room that he had found himself in when he was in his fifth year. But unlike then, he didn't close the door; he didn't want the walls to spin, and to forget which way he came in from.   
  
So he left the door that led into the hallway open, and tried a few of the doors. Nothing he wanted he found, for he was looking for the door that led to the brain room. Finally, after quite a while, Harry was growing quite desperate. He went up to a door at random, turned the knob, and to his great relief, found himself looking in the brain room. He stepped inside, but didn't close the door.   
  
"Hello, Harry," said a voice that made Harry nearly jump out of his skin.   
  
"Who's there?" Harry asked. "Voldemort?"  
  
"Not the Dark Lord," said the voice, "but I." And from the shadows came no one other than...  
  
"Percy?" said Harry incredulously. "You're a...a..."  
  
"Death Eater? Yes, though I prefer the term Dark Lord's most loyal servant."  
  
"I hate to disappoint you, Percy, but the position of Dark Lord's most loyal servant is already filled by Peter Pettigrew."  
  
"You think so, do you?" Percy said conversationally. "Anyhow, I came here to put a stop to you."  
  
"And what's that supposed to mean?" Harry spat.   
  
"It means exactly that." Percy raised his wand and threw a curse at Harry, who dodged it, and sent another curse back at Percy, who dodged it. "You think you can get rid of me that easily Potter?"  
  
"I should be asking you the same thing."  
  
Percy opened his mouth to say something, and Harry, seeing the lapse in concentration, sent a Stunner at Percy, and it hit him. Percy fell over on the ground.   
  
There was only one door in front of Harry; the same door that he had went through just two years before, but he had been with his friends then. Now he was alone. Harry stepped over the Stunned form of Percy Weasley, shook his head in disgust, and opened the door. Harry stepped over the threshold, and into the Death Chamber.   
  
He looked around. Nothing could be seen, no sign that anyone had been there...but then... who was that laying down in front of the veil? Harry walked down the steep stone steps, and when he reached to dais, he saw something that made his heart stop, and his blood run cold.   
  
Hermione was laying down in front of the veil...  
  
"So we meet again, Potter," said a voice that Harry knew only too well. It was a high, cold voice that made the hairs on the back of Harry's neck stand on end.   
  
Harry turned around, and found himself face to face with his enemy.   
  
"I knew if I took your...wife..." Voldemort grinned evilly, "you would surely come after her, and in doing so, I had hoped to meet up with you, which, of course, I have. Now I will have the great pleasure in killing you."  
  
"YOU MEAN LIKE YOU KILLED HERMIONE?!?" Harry yelled.  
  
"Yes, Potter, like I killed your precious Hermione. And the future child of yours is now dead."  
  
"I don't believe you."  
  
"Ah, then why don't you go over to her, and find out for yourself?"   
  
But Harry didn't turn around; he didn't want to believe it was true. It couldn't be true. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.   
  
It was the sound of Voldemort laughing that made him snap his eyes open; Harry took out his wand, raised it, and threw a curse a Voldemort. Voldemort dodged the curse easily, and sent another one at Harry.   
  
"PROTEGO!" Harry had cast the shield charm, and the curse the Voldemort had thrown now bounced back at him. He dodged it.   
  
Voldemort raised his wand again, but Harry ran up the stone steps to the brain room. Where ought he to go next? Before Harry could decide, he heard Voldemort coming up behind him, so he pushed through the door in front of him. It wouldn't open. The footsteps were coming closer. Getting desperate, Harry again pushed open a door at random, and found himself in the Hall of Prophecy.   
  
"You cannot run from me, Potter!" Harry heard Voldemort yell. He burst into the Hall of Prophecy also, and when he saw Harry, he raised his wand. He yelled out a curse, which missed, and Harry ran through yet another door.   
  
They dueled all over the Department of Mysteries, with Voldemort throwing curses at Harry, which either missed Harry because Voldemort was so furious, or because Harry dodged them. The same thing happened whenever Harry threw a curse at Voldemort.   
  
Harry was in the room that had all the ticking clocks in it, the one that sparkled, and he was alone. Panting slightly, he went into the brain room, thinking that he would get Hermione's body and bring it back to Hogwarts. He was at the dais, bending down to pick up Hermione, when he heard Voldemort yell, "CRUCIO!"  
  
Harry tried to dodge it, but failed. The curse hit him, and he was on the ground, screaming in agony. The pain was excruciating. It felt as though the sharpest of sharp knives were piercing every inch of him. The pain worsened, and Harry screamed even louder. He wanted it to end, he wanted out, he wanted to die... and suddenly, the curse was lifted. Harry lay there on the ground a a moment, and then got up, trembling horribly. He faced Voldemort.  
  
"Why haven't you tried to kill me yet?" Harry asked, his voice shaking as much as his trembling self.   
  
"I wanted to play around with you before killing you."  
  
"And why did you want to do that?"  
  
"I have been trying to kill you for so long that I wanted to have a little fun before trying to kill you tonight." Voldemort moved closer to Harry. "I'm going to kill you tonight, Potter. I'm going to kill you like I killed your beloved wife, like I killed that dratted Percy Weasley when he refused to join me.  
  
Harry let out a cold laugh. "You didn't kill Percy. He's here, I stunned him. Or have you forgotten?"  
  
"I did not forget, Potter. I killed Percy Weasley when he refused to join me. It was the summer before your sixth year. I had Wormtail impersonate him by using the Polyjuice potion, and take up a postition at the school of that Muggle-loving fool. Does that satisfy your curiousity, Potter? Do you have any last words, Potter?"  
  
"Yes," said Harry. "Why couldn't you hit me with all those curse a few minutes ago? Has your age finally caught up with you, Tom Riddle?"  
  
Voldemort's face suddenly contorted with rage. He raised his wand, pointed it at Harry, and yelled out those two deadly words, "AVADA KEDAVRA!"   
  
Harry immediatley transformed into his Phoenix form, and as he did so, he heard a door burst open, but Voldemort didn't notice it. The curse hit Harry. He burst into flame, and fell to the ground, a pile of ashes. Then, as does happen with Phoenixes when they die, a baby Phoenix rose from the ashes. In an instant the baby Phoenix turned back into Harry.  
  
"You'll have to do better than that to kill me, Tom!" shouted Harry. As soon as he had said this, another Killing Curse had been thrown at him. He didn't have enough time to transform back into a Phoenix, and the curse hit him head on.  
  
For a split second, there was silence while Harry stood there, green light emanating from his body. He was not completely alive, yet not completely dead. Voldemort threw another Killing Curse at Harry, and like the last one, it hit him head on. He heard someone scream; it sounded like his mother.   
  
"Harry!" said his mother's voice gently. "Harry, listen to me!"  
  
"Mum?"  
  
"Harry, listen to your mother," said Harry's father's voice.   
  
"Dad?" Harry choked out. He was surround by a brilliant white light. He could hear his parents's voices, but he couldn't see them.  
  
"Harry," said his father. "Now is not your time. You must defeat Voldemort."  
  
"I can't!" Harry said. "He's already killed me!"  
  
"No he hasn't," said his mother. "Not completely. You are still alive, and you can still defeat Voldemort."  
  
"But how?" Harry cried out.  
  
"When you come back to, the green light of the Killing Curses will enter you. Use all your strength and mind power to move that light to your eyes," said his father.  
  
"Why? What will happen?"  
  
"You will find out," said his father. "Good luck, son."  
  
Harry felt tears on his face.  
  
"Good luck, Harry," said his mother.  
  
Harry watched at the white light turned into green light. He watched as the green light entered him. Harry used all his strength to move the light to his eyes, but it wasn't enough...he couldn't do it... He heard his mother's voice, urging him on. The love of his mother filled Harry, until he felt it coursing through his body. The green light reached his eyes. It burst out, straight back at Voldemort. It hit him. Harry watched as the light collided with Voldemort, knocking him to the ground. Voldemort's body disappeared, and from where his body had been, a black mist rose...rose...and was gone.  
  
Harry heard people rushing towards him. Then, without an warning, his scar erupted in an excruciating amount of pain and agony. He clutched at the scar. It was blinding him with pain. He fell to his knees, screaming. The pain grew. He screamed louder. The pain grew even more in intensity, and suddenly Harry knew no more.  
  
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Please review 


	21. Reliving the Memories

Thanks for your reviews, gaul1, athenakitty, GryffRavHuffSlythendor, Neo Anderson, JD22, O'Malley the Alley Cat, babyjayy, TheGreatFox2000, dreamcatcher386, and volleypickle16!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
  
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"Where am I?" was the first thing Harry said when he woke up. He had his eyes closed.   
  
"You are in St. Mungo's, Harry," said Dumbledore's voice.  
  
Suddenly everything that had happened in the Department of Mysteries came rushing back to him. Harry's eyes snapped open, and he sat up quickly. Dumbledore, the Weasley's (except Ron and Percy), and Remus Lupin were standing around his bed.   
  
"It's good to see you awake," said Lupin, smiling kindly.  
  
"How long have I been here?"  
  
"Two days," said Dumbledore.  
  
"But what about Voldemort?"  
  
"You have defeated him once and for all, Harry. The entire Wizarding world is in your debt," said Mr. Weasley.  
  
Harry felt a tear slide down his face. "Hermione's dead. I saw her body next to the veil. Voldemort killed her."  
  
"Dead?" said Dumbledore.   
  
Harry nodded. Dumbledore moved away so Harry could get a clear view of the bed next to his. On it was Hermione, and she, too, was sitting up. She smiled at Harry.  
  
"Hello, Harry."  
  
Harry's jaw dropped.  
  
"Her- Hermione? I thought you were dead!"  
  
"She isn't dead, as you can see, Harry," said Dumbledore. "However, she is seriously injured, but she and the baby are going to be all right."  
  
Harry got out of bed, despite Mrs. Weasley's protests.  
  
"Harry, you're only in your pyjamas! Get back in bed before you catch something!"  
  
"He'll be fine, Molly," said Dumbledore.  
  
Harry sat on Hermione's bed and embraced her.   
  
"I was so afraid that you were..."  
  
"Shh, Harry, I'm all right," whispered Hermione. Harry pulled back from her so that he could look her in the face.  
  
"Hermione..." Harry was so happy to see her, he didn't know how to express it, so instead of saying anything, he kissed her passionately on the lips, and when he broke away, he was smiling broadly. He went back to his hospital bed, and got in it.   
  
"On a more serious note, Harry," said Dumbledore, "I must ask you to tell me everything that happened in the Department of Mysteries."  
  
"Does he have to, Albus?" said Mrs. Weasley. "Look at him! He needs rest!"  
  
"And he will get rest, Molly. But first, he needs to tell me what happened. If he waits, it will only make it worse when he finally does tell me what happened."  
  
Mrs. Weasley nodded.   
  
"Harry?" said Dumbledore.   
  
Reluctantly, Harry took a deep breath, and began to tell what happened. When he reached the part about how he had transformed himself into a Phoenix, Dumbledore stopped him for a second.  
  
"Harry, how did you become that particular Animagus?"  
  
Harry looked at Lupin. "When I went back in time, my dad and Sirius helped me with becoming an Animagus. When they found out that my form was a Phoenix, the younger version of Remus Lupin told me that I was apparently Merlin's heir."  
  
"That is quite amazing, Harry!" said Dumbledore. "But please, continue on with your tale of events."  
  
So Harry continued. It was hard for him to go on, but he knew he must; if he stopped now, he knew he wouldn't be able to go on. So Harry told Dumbledore everything, with the Weasley's, Lupin, and Hermione listening to every word. When Harry reached the part about hearing his parents's voices, everyone gasped, but other than that, remained silent. Tears started coming down his face, but he knew he must go on. Finally, Harry reached the end of his story, finishing it with mentioning himself waking up in St. Mungo's. Mrs. Weasley went over to Harry and hugged him, held him close. Harry broke down sobbing in her arms.   
  
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Please review 


	22. Graduation

Thanks for your reviews, Wytil, O'Malley the Alley Cat, Anony Mous, JD22, athenakitty, dreamcatcher386, TheGreatFox2000, volleypickle16, and Neo Anderson!  
  
athenakitty= Yes, yes, you'll find out, and you'll find out.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
  
.  
  
The next morning, Harry and Hermione were alone in the hospital room. Since they were married, St. Mungo's had let them have a private room. At the moment, they were silent, staring out the window, through which they could see other London buildings, and even a church steeple. Different thoughts were running through their heads. Hermione was thinking about the baby, of course, and Harry was thinking of how exactly he could start his career as an Auror, so as to support his family. He supposed he would have to ask Dumbledore about it. And speaking of Dumbledore....  
  
"Good morning, Harry, Hermione," said the Hogwarts headmaster as he entered the room.   
  
"Good morning, Professor," they replied.  
  
"What are you here for?" said Harry, a little curiously.  
  
Dumbledore sat down in a chair that was between Harry's and Hermione's beds.   
  
"I would just like to let you know that Percy a.k.a. Wormtail, or, Peter Pettigrew, has been taken care of.  
  
"What do you mean, exactly, "taken care of", Professor?" Hermione asked.   
  
"I mean that he has been..."  
  
"Killed?" Harry finished for him.  
  
"Yes, Harry," replied Dumbledore. "He has been killed. And by a couple of Aurors, who had been given permission by Mr. Weasley, the Minister for Magic. And speaking of Aurors, Harry." Harry snapped to attention. "I received the scores for the NEWTs you took while you were in your father's time. Very high marks, they were. I gave them, the scores, I mean, to the Auror headquarters. They want you to come there the day after graduation to start your training."  
  
For a moment, Harry couldn't speak. An Auror! Him! He was going to be an Auror!   
  
"Th-thank you, Professor!" said Harry, stammering out his thanks.  
  
"No need to thank me, Harry," said a smiling Dumbledore, getting up from his chair. He stopped at the door. "And one last thing before I leave. Harry, the Healers have told me to tell you that you are going to be released today from St. Mungo's." Harry shouted with joy. "As for you Hermione," said Dumbledore, turning to her, "you are going to be released in two days. The Healers want to run some more tests, to make sure you are completely all right."  
  
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Later that afternoon, Harry was indeed released from St. Mungo's. He would have stayed there until Hermione was also released, but she made him go back to Hogwarts. Reluctantly Harry did so, where he was being pestered with questions about what had happened in the Department of Mysteries. Finally, Harry became fed up with the questions, so he consented to a sort-of interview about his accounts. The interview would be appearing in the Daily Prophet. He didn't really want to do this, but he had to, or else the students of Hogwarts would have gone one pestering him. At least Mark, his cousin didn't do this.  
  
Speaking of Mark... he hadn't been really hanging around Harry that much. Harry knew it was because Mark wanted to get to know the students in his own year. Harry didn't mind this, though. He thought it was good that Mark was finally hanging out with kids his own age.   
  
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Two days later, much to Harry's delight, Hermione was released from St. Mungo's in excellent condition. She had come back to Hogwarts just in time for graduation, too. Graduation, however, wouldn't be for another day. Until then, All the seventh years practically had the run of the place. They could go anywhere in Hogwarts that they wished, and they could stay up as late as they wanted.   
  
It was because of this freedom, though it was only for the one night, that Harry and Hermione were on top of one of the Astronomy towers. Harry had set down a nice, warm, blanket, and he was sitting down on it; Hermione, however, was laying down, with her head in Harry's lap. Harry was running his fingers gently through her hair. They were looking up at the sky, looking at the stars in silence.   
  
"Harry?"  
  
"Hm?" was Harry's reply.   
  
"Where are going to live? After we graduate, I mean. Where are we going to go after Hogwarts?"  
  
"Well, I didn't plan on telling you this until tomorrow after graduation," said Harry after a pause. "But, well, see...You know the Potter House, my grandparents's and parents's place?"  
  
"Oh yeah, in Godric's Hollow."  
  
"Well...I've had some people restoring it, and well...if you want...i mean...it's not quite ready for people to live in. But by November it should be ready for us to move in, if you want to live there..."  
  
Hermione sat up, and looked Harry in the face. "Really?" Harry nodded nervously. "I'd love to live there!"  
  
Harry smiled, and kissed her lightly on the lips.   
  
"Good. But before we move there, we're going to be staying at 12 Grimmauld Place."  
  
"That's fine by me," said Hermione.   
  
Harry smiled at her, but said nothing. They stayed like that for a few more minutes, until Hermione glanced at her watch.  
  
"Harry, it's nearly 2:00 in the morning! We'd better get back to Gryffindor tower and get some sleep, I mean, I don't think we want to miss graduation!"  
  
"Yeah, you're right," said Harry. "Let's get going."  
  
Harry and Hermione were late in getting back to Gryffindor tower, but the Fat Lady didn't way anything. They stepped into the common room.  
  
"I'm too tired to walk up the stairs," complained Hermione, flopping down upon the couch in front of the fireplace.   
  
"Let's sleep down here, then."  
  
"No, I don't want to wake up to a bunch of first years staring at me." Reluctantly, she got up from the couch and headed towards the girls' staircase. "Good night, Harry."  
  
"Good night, Hermione." Harry watched Hermione walk up the staircase, and then went up to his own dorm, where he immediatley fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow.  
  
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The next day, Seamus shook Harry until he woke up. That wasn't really to Harry's liking.  
  
"Whadyoudothatfor?" said Harry groggily. He opened his eyes slowly, and looked out the window, immediatley having to squint against the bright sunlight that was filtering throughout the room.  
  
"To wake you up," said Seamus, opening his trunk and pulling his dress robe. "Come on and get up. All seventh years have a special breakfast down in the Great Hall, and then we go out onto the Quidditch pitch for graduation.  
  
Harry got out of bed, and opened his trunk and pulled out his dress robe. It was the same bottle-green one that Mrs. Weasley had got him before his fourth year, and, surprisingly, it still fit him. Harry put this on, and then went down to the common room to meet Hermione. She was wearing a light blue dress robe, and all the bushiness of her hair was gone. Instead, it hung straight. On the way to breakfast, Harry noticed a lot of people staring at her. He forgot about this, however, as soon as he and Hermione saw who was waiting for them at the Gryffindor table: Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Bill, Charlie, Fred, George, Lupin, and Hermione's parents.  
  
During the seventh year breakfast, Harry and Hermione had a very good time chatting with the people who had come to their graduation. Harry had a very nice chat with Mr. and Mrs. Granger, who were very glad that their daughter had chosen to marry such a nice person. They hoped to visit Harry and Hermione once they had got all settled into the Potter House in November. Harry and Hermione said that they would be glad of this. All too soon, it was time to go down to the pitch. Harry and Hermione said good bye to Lupin, the Weasleys, and the Grangers, and joined the rest of the seventh years on their way down.   
  
When everyone, all the seventh years, and all the families and friends, had settled down, the graduation ceremony had begun. It went on for a while, as there were so many seventh years. But eventually the ceremony came to an end, and afterwords, after everyone had said good bye, after Harry and Hermione had said good bye to Hermione's parents, Lupin, and the Weasleys, all the seventh years went to their respective Houses.  
  
"Looking forward to tomorrow, Harry?" said Neville, as he and Harry walked up to their dorm.   
  
"Eh, I don't know," Harry replied. "I mean, in some ways I don't want to leave, because this castle holds so many memories, and in other ways, I can't wait to get away.  
  
"Yeah, I know what you mean," said Neville.  
  
"You can't wait to get away either?"  
  
"Actually, I'm going to be coming back next year as the Herbology Professor."  
  
Harry stared. "Really?" He opened the door that led into their dorm. "Well, that isn't really surprising. Herbology is your best subject."  
  
Neville smiled, and he and Harry got dressed into their pyjamas. They were just climbing into bed when Dean and Seamus came in.   
  
"Oh, you two going to bed?" said Seamus.  
  
"No, actually we're going shopping," said Harry, grinning. Seamus hit him with his pillow.   
  
"Good night," said Neville.  
  
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Please review  
  
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There's just one more chapter after this one. But don't worry, I have lots of ideas for Harry Potter fan fics, so I won't be retiring from writing anytime soon. I'll be posting the first chapter of my new HP fan fic at the same time I post the last chapter for THIS fan fic, so I'll let you know what the story ID of my new fic is at the end of the last chapter of this story. 


	23. A New Beginning

Thanks for your reviews, Jared, O'Malley the Alley Cat, volleypickle16, TheGreatFox2000, GryffRavHuffSlythendor, athenakitty, gaul1, dreamcatcher386, and JD22!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
  
.  
  
The very next day, all the students of Hogwarts found themselves on the train, on their way back to Kings Cross station in London. No one was very happy about having to leave Hogwarts, the seventh years even more so, because they wouldn't be returning to Hogwarts. All in all, it was a subdued group that walked off the Hogwarts express to greet friends and family who were waiting for them.   
  
It was the usual group who were waiting for Harry and Hermione, and Ginny after they got off the train, and went through the barrier. The Weasleys were there, of course, as was Lupin, and Hermione's parents. They greeted Harry, Ginny, and Hermione with enthusiasm. After saying a long farewell to her parents, Hermione went with Harry, Ginny, Lupin, and the Weasleys back to 12 Grimmauld Place.   
  
"Well, he were are," said Lupin at the steps of 12 Grimmauld Place. He held the door open for everyone, and as soon as they had gone through, he followed them, and shut the door behind him.   
  
Harry thought that the house looked...cheerful, somewhat. All the elf heads were gone from the walls, as were many of the portraits, including the one of Sirius's mother. The umbrella stand that looked like a troll's leg was gone, replaced by an umbrella stand that looked like a very large flower.   
  
"Wow, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione said, looking around. "You certainly have made some changes to this place. It looks a lot more cheerful."  
  
"And it feels a lot more homey," said Harry, also taking in everything.   
  
"Why, thank you, dears," said Mrs. Weasley. "It took a lot of work, but with some help from the Order, this place is finally fit to live in."  
  
"So I take it there aren't any more Doxies flying around the curtains?" said Fred.  
  
"No, Fred," answered his mother. Fred pouted.  
  
"Not even a Doxie egg?"  
  
"No, George, not even a Doxie egg. Why do you ask?" said Mrs. Weasley suspiciously.  
  
George shrugged. "Just wondering."  
  
Mrs. Weasley turned toward Harry and Hermione. "Dears, your bedroom is on the second floor."  
  
"Is it the same room that Ron and I shared before fifth and sixth year?"  
  
"Yes," Mrs. Weasley replied. "Except the twin beds aren't there anymore. There's just one bed, but it's large enough for the both of you."  
  
"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley," said Hermione.   
  
"Not a problem, dear."  
  
"See you all at dinner!" said Hermione. She and Harry put spell on their trunks to make them float, and then headed towards their room on the second floor.   
  
When they got to the room, they put their trunks down, and got settled in. They got dressed into some fresh clothes, and then lay down on the bed, looking up at the ceiling.  
  
"Harry?" said Hermione.  
  
"Hm?"  
  
"I...I just wanted to let you know that I love you."  
  
"I know. I love you too, Hermione."  
  
"Are you excited about becoming a father?"  
  
"I'm ecstatic!" said Harry. "I can hardly wait to teach the baby to play Quidditch when he or she gets older, and I'm looking forward to telling the baby all about Hogwarts, and which teachers to watch out for. Are you excited about being a mother?"  
  
"Definitely," replied Hermione. "I'm looking forward to sitting in front of the fire on a winter evening, and reading aloud to our child. And perhaps baking some cookies."  
  
Harry grinned. "Yeah..."  
  
"Auror training starts tomorrow," said Hermione. "Are you ready for it?"  
  
"As ready as I'll ever be," said Harry.   
  
"Doesn't Auror training last for three years?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Yeah, it does."  
  
"And then afterwards-"  
  
"I'll be a fully trained, dark wizard catcher," said Harry.  
  
"Not to mention an illegal Animagus," said Hermione.  
  
"Yeah, that too."  
  
Harry looked over at Hermione and smiled.   
  
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A few months had gone by, and winter was quickly approaching. It was currently the month of November. Harry was doing very well in Auror training, and he was enjoying it immensely. It was also a few days until the baby was to be born, and Hermione was at St. Mungo's already, because the baby could be born at any time. Since Harry couldn't stay at St. Mungo's 24/7, he was to be alerted of any sign of Hermione going into labor in an instant by a newly discovered mind-link spell.  
  
Harry had just finished the day's Auror training. He and the other Auror hopefuls had been training for concealment and disguise. Because he was a Metamorphagus, it hadn't been difficult. Of course, the Auror trainer had mentioned to Harry that he was the only Metamorphagus he had met since Nymphadora Tonks.   
  
Harry Apparated back to 12 Grimmauld Place. At the moment, he was the only one there. Mr. Weasley and Bill were at the Ministry; Charlie was back in Romania; Mrs. Weasley was in Diagon Alley, doing a little shopping; Fred and George were also at Diagon Alley, but they were at their store, Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes; and last, but not least, Hermione was still at St. Mungo's.   
  
And speaking of which.... Something was buzzing inside his head. What could it be? Then it hit him: The mind-link spell! Hermione! Harry immediatley Apparated to St. Mungo's, and arrived at the ground floor. There was a long line at the Welcome Witch's desk, but Harry didn't bother with waiting. He cut to the front, despite complaints from the other witches and wizards.   
  
"Sir, you'll have to wait at the back of the line," said the Welcome Witch.  
  
"I can't!" said Harry desperately. "My wife is about to have a baby! Her name is Hermione Gra- Potter. Hermione Potter. Please, what room is she in?"   
  
Sighing, the Welcome Witch looked at the list of patients, and told Harry where Hermione was in. Thanking the Witch, Harry immediately departed to Hermione's hospital room. He got there just as the door was opening.   
  
"Harry, you're here! Good," said Mrs. Weasley, poking her head out the door. " Hermione's parents are here, too. Come in, come in. She's just gone into labor."   
  
She held the door open for Harry, who rushed to Hermione's bedside. He took her hand and clasped it in his own.   
  
"I love you, Hermione." Harry lightly kissed her forehead. Hermione managed a weak smile, but not much else.   
  
Several hours later, and the baby still had not come. Everyone was worried about Hermione and the baby, but Harry was worried the most. He sat in a chair by Hermione's bedside, and held her hand through the entire ordeal. Mr. and Mrs. Granger were out in the hall. Harry could hear Mrs. Granger crying. Mrs. Weasley was still in the hospital room, pacing back and forth, wringing her hands, and looking extremely worried.   
  
"I can't do this, Harry!" Hermione said in a whisper. "I just can't!"  
  
"Shhh! Nonsense!" whispered Harry, squeezing her hand lightly. "You can do this. I know you can!"  
  
"I can't!"  
  
"Yes you can! Try harder!"  
  
Hermione gave one last push, and the baby started to appear. Mrs. Weasley yelled for Mr. and Mrs. Granger, and they came running into the room, stopping inches from Hermione's bedside. Harry closed his eyes, praying... And suddenly, a baby's cries could be heard. Harry's eyes snapped open. He looked at Hermione, who had relaxed, then at the Healer, who was holding his child.  
  
"It's a girl!" said the Healer. The healer cleaned the baby off with a wave of her wand, and with another wave of her wand, put a blanket around the baby girl.   
  
"What would you like to name her?" asked the Healer.   
  
Harry and Hermione glanced at each other.  
  
"Jamie Helen Potter," Harry said. He looked back at Hermione, and saw tears on her face. He kissed her, then turned to the Healer. "Can I hold her?"  
  
With steady arms, the Healer gave Jamie to Harry to hold. He looked down at his daughter's face. Jamie was awake, but she wasn't crying. Harry smiled.   
  
Suddenly, Hermione tensed up.  
  
"What's wrong? What's the matter?" said Harry urgently.  
  
"Another baby is on it's way. You're going to have twins!"  
  
At this, Mrs. Granger hugged her husband and Mrs. Weasley. Harry felt a tear slide down his face. He was so happy that he was crying. He held Jamie close with one arm, while his other hand was in Hermione's.   
  
A few minutes later, the second baby arrived, and it too, was a girl.   
  
"What would you like to name your second daughter?" said the Healer. Harry gave Jamie to Mrs. Granger, and took his second daughter in his arms.  
  
"Aphrodite Pandora Potter." He said.   
  
"That's a very pretty name," said the healer.  
  
"Can I hold Jamie?" Hermione asked her mother. Mrs. Granger put Jamie in Hermione's arms.  
  
Harry caught Hermione's eye, and smiled. Hermione smiled back.   
  
.  
  
A few days later, Hermione was well enough to come back to 12 Grimmauld Place. Harry went to St. Mungo's to make sure that Hermione was safe on the return trip, as well as his twin daughters, Jamie and Aphrodite. As soon as they reached 12 Grimmauld Place, the Weasley's helped Harry and Hermione pack up their belongings, for Harry and Hermione would be moving into the Potter house in Godric's Hollow.   
  
Upon arriving at Godric's Hollow, which was was completely furnished, and which had all the needed supplies in it for Jamie and Aphrodite, the Weasley's help Harry and Hermione settle in.   
  
Upon leaving, Mrs. Weasley said, "If you two need any advice or help, don't hesitate to ask!"  
  
"We won't, Mrs. Weasley. And thanks so much for helping me and Hermione to settle in, all of you."  
  
"Not a problem Harry," said Fred.  
  
"We were glad to help," said George.  
  
"And when your two daughters are older, we'll teach them all about Hogwarts."  
  
"Like what they can get away with, rule breaking wise."  
  
"And I'll show them the Map," said Harry to Fred and George.  
  
"Yeah, and then they can sneak into Honeyduke's-"  
  
"Fred, George! That's enough!" said Mrs. Weasley sharply. "Let's leave Harry and Hermione in peace for a while."  
  
"Bye!" said Harry and Hermione, waving. The Weasley's waved good bye, and were gone.  
  
Later that night, Harry and Hermione stood in their own bedroom, where the crib of Jamie and Aphrodite was. Harry and Hermione put Jamie and Aphrodite into the crib, and then stood there for a while, looking at their twin daughters, who were already sleeping peacefully.   
  
"They're adorable, aren't they?" said Hermione.  
  
Harry smiled. "Yeah, they are. Just look at them. Sleeping peacefully. I love them."  
  
"I love them, too," said Hermione.   
  
Harry and Hermione got into their own bed at last. Hermione went to sleep right away, a smile remaining on her face. Harry stared up at the ceiling, his hands behind his head. He was smiling, happy at the thought of him and Hermione being parents. Happy at the thought of his daughters. He looked forward to raising them, telling them stories of his school days. He closed his eyes and fell asleep.   
  
.  
  
The End  
  
.  
  
Aargh! I'm sad that this story is over! I WILL do a sequel to it, but I just had this idea for this other fan fic that I wanted to write.  
  
Please review, and after doing so, :-) I have already posted the first chapter of my newest HP fanfic. It's called Muggle in the Ministry. Here's the summary: A 17 year old American Muggle is visiting London for the first time in her life. One day she gets lost, and accidentally enters the Ministry of Magic! She meets a wizard who is also 17, and the Minister's son! What will happen when she is found out?  
  
Here's the story ID: 1884812  
  
After I'm done with Muggle in the Ministry, I will do a sequel for A New Beginning, because I REALLY love that story, so no need to worry! :-) 


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